Seattle weather forecast for NFC Championship: Clear skies, chilly temps

The NFC Championship game between the Seattle Seahawks and Los Angeles Rams kicks off shortly after 3:30 p.m. on Sunday. The winner will go to the Super Bowl in Santa Clara, California on Feb. 8.

The weather for this game at Lumen Field in Seattle will be quite similar to that experienced during last weekend’s divisional playoff contest against the San Francisco 49ers. Skies will be generally clear throughout the game, nearly ideal for the latter part of January.

Temperatures will be quite cool, though. At kickoff, it will be around 43 degrees, and it will continue to drop into the upper 30s by the final whistle. Light variable winds are anticipated throughout the game. If going to the game, be sure to wear layers of clothing, headwear, and gloves.

Why the dry January streak

Strong high pressure aloft is driving the current dry weather. This weather system is expected to remain over the Pacific Northwest through the weekend and into at least early next week. At the surface, higher pressure in the Western Canada interior and east of the Cascades will promote light low-level offshore winds, helping erode overnight and morning fog or low clouds across much of western Washington, and revealing more mid-winter sunshine.

Any rain in sight?

Weather forecast guidance into next week suggests this dry streak could end on Tuesday or Wednesday as the strong high pressure aloft weakens, permitting Pacific weather systems to approach. Other forecast guidance implies the dry weather could extend into the latter part of next week.

In the meantime, daytime high temperatures will struggle to reach the lower to mid-40s, while overnight lows are expected to dip into the 20s to the lower 30s again. The Seattle area average high temperature at this point of the year is in the upper 40s.

Areas of fog and low clouds will continue to develop overnight and linger into the afternoons in some of the more persistent areas, such as the south sound and the Chehalis valley. Freezing temperatures will also create more areas of night and morning freezing fog and icy spots on roadways.

Year’s first 5 p.m. sunset

One bright spot? The year’s first 5 p.m. sunset will occur during the playoff game on Sunday. Days are getting longer. Sunday will also mark the first day of gaining two-and-a-half minutes per day. The year’s first 7:30 a.m. sunrise is set for a couple of days after Feb. 2, Groundhog Day.

Have other Januaries also had long dry periods?

Sunday’s championship playoff game will also mark the 13th straight day of dry weather, matching the longest dry streak of this century set just last year. Seattle-Tacoma International Airport (SEA) has recorded no measurable precipitation for 13 days, resulting in January finishing nearly four inches below average.

SEA got off to a wet start this year before the dry weather pattern became established. SEA has had about three-and-a-third inches of rain during the first 12 days of the month. The average monthly rainfall is close to five-and-three-quarters of an inch, and this month’s rainfall will very likely fall well short of average.

Other dry Januaries so far this century included 2013, when SEA had a streak of 12 dry days. January 2009 had an 11-day stretch of dry weather, and both 2014 and 2022 had nine-day runs of dry conditions.

In sharp contrast, January can also be quite wet. This month in 2006 had a whopping 11.65 inches of rain at SEA, nearly six inches above average.

This January 2026 period of dry weather is quite likely to join not only the group of seemingly unusual mid-winter dry periods, but also become the longest dry streak this century thus far.

Ted Buehner is the KIRO Newsradio meteorologist. Follow him on X and Bluesky. Read more of his stories here.