The NFL would like you to believe there’s a real debate among players regarding the question of whether they prefer grass or turf. There is not. It’s a contrived notion aimed at justifying the cheaper approach to outfitting a field. The owners who have turf don’t want to pay for grass, and the Commissioner who is paid by all of them willingly runs interference. Meanwhile, specific players continue to make the case for grass, while not a single current player has sung the praises of the fake stuff. “Turf is tough on the body and being at that place,” Dolphins safety Jevon Holland told #PFTPM, specifically regarding the surface at MetLife Stadium. “I’ve had two of my friends now get injured from that. I just think it needs to be done with, honestly. I think it, you know, they need to really look into it and invest in a better playing surface for their team and teams around the league.” Indeed they do. Most recently, Dolphins edge rusher Jaelen Phillips had his Achilles tendon rip while pushing out of his two-point stance at the start of a play last Friday. “Turf is — it’s a hard surface,” Holland added. “There’s no give. Like grass, there’s give and it works with — when you cut, you can feel your cleats sink into the ground. Turf is, it’s like playing on — not playing on asphalt, but it in some terms it is. It’s tough on your joints and your knees and your ankles, and when you hit the ground, there’s no shock absorption to the ground. There’s none of that. But on grass there is. When you fall on the ground, you can roll and you feel like the earth isn’t so hard. That’s the biggest thing for me, honestly. I think that turf is just really tough on the joints and it has a long-lasting effect after practice, after games like, those things start to add up. Playing on grass for me always feels better.” That’s the common refrain from players. Even if they emerge from a given game on turf without an injury, they feel the overall impact on their bodies of playing on a surface with no give. Anyone who ever played even two-hand touch on the old green-cement artificial surface knows how it feels to get out of bed the next day. Even with fake stuff that looks less like patio carpet and more like grass, the lack of give means that bodies get banged up a lot worse. But the league will continue to gloss over that fact, simply because the owners who have turf don’t want to make the investment in a better and safer playing surface.
They can do a hybrid turf/naturalgrass which many La Liga/German Bundesliga/Premier League use to maintain their fields.. bundesliga has some real high tech fields to maintain their surfaces..
All around Europe you only find pitches with natural or hybridturf, at least in professional soccer. There are some rare exceptions though in Scandinavia for instance and I think in the Netherlands. Since I follow football (88‘) I can only recall one time my team playing on artificial grass/turf.
They were talking about the MetLife turf on WFAN NY this morning. Apparently there's some rumblings that free agents won't sign there because of how bad the turf is. After this season's injuries to just Rodgers and Phillips it's going to be even harder. Guys have a legitimate concern for the longevity of their careers playing there 8+ times a season.
The fact that the NFL can say that there’s a debate among players with a straight face is astounding, since no player at any level has ever said that turf is better than grass. I'm surprised Rodgers isn’t raising a stink about it.
I was going to say the same thing. The show Ryan Reynolds was on where he bought the soccer team, they paid $120k to sod the field and it didn't take, so they paid $120k all over again. You wouldn't think that would be a huge hit for owners pockets, even if they were up north and had to re-sod every season. I guess I've never really thought about it though, how's the grass up north in January after it hasn't grown for several months? How do you patch up the field when grass is dormant? I guess it's more than just planting once and forgetting about it.
Thought there was something better out now. Back in day turf was basically on top on concrete. I've played on the local high school football field and it felt great. It felt like there was some kind of "padding" below it and the "turf" was thicker. I was not however getting slammed to the turf by 250 pound linebackers.
My soccerball team, Sheffield United, had a new hybrid pitch laid a few years ago. The company name is Desso. They do pitches for the top teams in the world (obviously!). It's been great and it looks just as lush in January/February as it does in August The stadium must look small when you're used to seeing the huge NFL stadiums but it's my spiritual home so just go easy. PS: Wish I'd known they had 'tent racing' there. I'd have gone to see that.
Problem is, other teams, especially the rest of the AFC East, have to play there. It's an issue for players across the league.
I was stationed at Fort Leavenworth, KS in the early 90's. The Chiefs won the lottery per say and landed the grand prize at the time...quarterback Joe Montana. I forget the exact year, but I recall Montana's nugget slamming into the artificial turf that was Arrowhead Stadium at the time. The following year, artificial turf was gone and Arrowhead was fitted with grass. If the Jets and Giants don't want to foot the bill to ref-fit the stadium for the star players they try to attract, then those two teams will continue to dwell in the basement of their divisions...and sadly risk the safety of the players of the teams that play there.
