The ongoing debate surrounding the use of artificial turf versus natural grass fields in the NFL has once again taken center stage after New York Jets star quarterback Aaron Rodgers suffered a season-ending Achilles injury on Monday night.
MetLife Stadium of course has artificial turf. (In fairness, Rodgers’ injury would have happened no matter what the surface was.)
This unfortunate incident has reignited the call for transitioning all NFL stadiums to grass playing surfaces in the interest of player safety.
Forbes recently conducted a comprehensive analysis, shedding light on the estimated cost of converting the remaining turf fields in the league to natural grass.
According to their findings, the price tag to make the switch to grass across all fields would be approximately $12 million. When considering the substantial revenue generated by each team and the league as a whole, this cost appears relatively modest.
Players and the NFLPA are enormously supportive of the notion that this $12 million investment is a small price to pay if it can contribute to reducing the number of injuries sustained by players throughout the season.
Research into the matter consistently suggests that grass playing surfaces tend to be safer than their artificial turf counterparts. The 2022 NFL season only served to exacerbate this issue, as data indicated a notable discrepancy in non-contact injuries between turf and grass fields, the largest such gap since the 2016 season.
“Ten of the previous 11 years show the same exact thing – grass is a significantly safer surface than turf,” emphasized NFLPA president and former offensive lineman JC Tretter earlier this year.
His statement underscores the growing consensus among players and their representatives that prioritizing player safety by transitioning to natural grass fields is an imperative step for the league to take.
What are your thoughts on the whole grass vs. artificial turf debate?