too soon for an NFL thread?

[DaBoltsNIsles]

They play on natural grass. Always have. It's hard to maintain grass in December and January and replacing the sod doesn't do much/any good for the same reasons.

I know they play on natural grass. I just thought they might have done some replanting at some point duriing the season. The commentators mentioned before the game it has been a mild winter in the area, not much snow.

 

[elocomotive]

I know they play on natural grass. I just thought they might have done some replanting at some point duriing the season. The commentators mentioned before the game it has been a mild winter in the area, not much snow.

I know in some years they have replaced the entire field. Not sure if they did this year or not. Sometimes the field is worse off when they replace it if the sod has not taken than having some dirt out there.

I think in terms of injuries, the field/conditions are often overstated. Bad injuries usually happen when body parts get tangled/turned the wrong way. Especially with knees (as Pix was saying) a softer field is less likely to cause that kind of injury. :

 

[DaBoltsNIsles]

I know in some years they have replaced the entire field. Not sure if they did this year or not. Sometimes the field is worse off when they replace it if the sod has not taken than having some dirt out there.

I think in terms of injuries, the field/conditions are often overstated. Bad injuries usually happen when body parts get tangled/turned the wrong way. Especially with knees (as Pix was saying) a softer field is less likely to cause that kind of injury. :

I was just surprised when I heard the field had been painted. Injuries happen no matter what the field conditions are. Hopefully RG3, Clemons & whoever else was injured during today's games make full recoveries.

 

[jstewismybastardson]

The Redskins Were Done In By Their Own “Crappy” Field
Barry Petchesky View ProfileEmailTwitterRSSHere's Pierre Garcon, on the soupy, sloppy, green-painted dirt that passes for grass between the hash marks at FedEx Field:

"It is something to worry about. It is tough. But we have long spikes, we have spikes to hopefully keep our footing better on the field. But the field, it is what you see. It's pretty nasty out there. I don't know, that gives us an advantage - when teams come from playing on turf to playing on grass, I guess that slows them down a little bit more than it slows us down."

That quote is a month old.

Despite what Garcon said, the conditions didn't particularly favor the home team yesterday. The Seahawks, used to playing on always-solid, never-slippery FieldTurf, had two players suffer leg injuries on the day—kicker Steven Hauschka slipped and hurt his ankle and couldn't handle kickoff duties, while DE Chris Clemons lost his footing and left with what's believed to be a torn ACL. (Clemons's agent blamed it on the "crappy" field.) The Redskins lost two of their own. Guard Kory Lichtensteiger aggravated an ankle injury in the first quarter, and Robert Griffin III, their quarterback, their franchise player who came into the game with a brace and a gimpy knee and would still need to scramble if Washington had any hope of staying alive, ended up sprawled in the muck.

Griffin tweaked his knee early, but might have survived had been able to plant his leg on a muffed snap in the fourth. Instead his spikes refused to grip, his leg shot out at a grotesque and unnatural angle, and that was that. FedEx Field, which hadn't seen rain in days, claimed a season in an inexplicable quagmire.

Here are some Redskins' reactions to the condition of the grass.

"It's the same thing we've been dealing with for the last eight weeks at home," fullback Darrel Young said.

"Nothing different than what it has been," running back Alfred Morris said.

Asked if they were worse than usual, Reed Doughty cocked an eyebrow.

"Here?" he said. "No."

The grass at FedEx Field has been a joke for a long time (Tifway 419 Bermudagrass, if you're curious). It's a wonder the NFL, so concerned these days with player safety, hasn't spoken to the Redskins about their field. It's not as if there's not precedent: in 2006, the NFL compelled New England to re-sod Gillette Stadium because the grass was so atrocious. A month later, the Patriots just replaced the whole thing with FieldTurf. Will Roger Goodell lean on Dan Snyder to make changes before the start of next season? Will Snyder open his wallet voluntarily? Or will the Redskins, who mortgaged the future on a player who needs to cut and deke and maintain his footing, abandon him to the elements?

Griffin, in between answering questions about his health and his coach's decision to leave him in the game, had time for a brief word on the FedEx grass. Just try to read it without getting sad.

"That's just part of our home-field advantage."

 

[SLY]

"That's just part of our home-field advantage."

 

[elocomotive]

"That's just part of our home-field advantage."

Don't artificial fields fall under "pussification of sports," Jeff?

I think Griffin is right though. Anytime you have a field that is somewhat unique - odd outfield corners in baseball, really hard or soft boards in hockey, etc. - it definitely offers that home team an advantage in that they are more prepare to play with those unusual conditions.

 

[SLY]

Don't artificial fields fall under "pussification of sports," Jeff?

I think Griffin is right though. Anytime you have a field that is somewhat unique - odd outfield corners in baseball, really hard or soft boards in hockey, etc. - it definitely offers that home team an advantage in that they are more prepare to play with those unusual conditions.

I suppose. I was just smirking at the irony.

 

[SLY]

I should probably throw "Anti-NHL Pussification " back up.

 

[Bizzle McDizzle]

I should probably throw "Anti-NHL Pussification " back up.

yup

 

[sabresfaninthesouth]

Players frequently complain about the FieldTurf too and how easy it is to get a knee or ankle twisted in it.

I think they need to just go back to good old fashioned mud bowls.

 

[jstewismybastardson]

Players frequently complain about the FieldTurf too and how easy it is to get a knee or ankle twisted in it.

I think they need to just go back to good old fashioned mud bowls.

iirc the Clemons injury was the first acl blowout a seahawk had this year ... the clink has fieldturf

 

[puckhead]

Arian Foster's twitter avatar

 

[sabresfaninthesouth]

iirc the Clemons injury was the first acl blowout a seahawk had this year ... the clink has fieldturf

I think it was Big Ben sometime earlier in the season gave a pretty blunt assessment of his feelings for Field Turf.

But I guess like real grass there's differences in the quality of the Field Turf from one location to the next also.

And it seems to me that the number of ACL, MCL, etc. type injuries has spiked in recent years, consistent with the rise of Field Turf. No actual stats to back that up mind you, just my observation.

 

[jstewismybastardson]

I think it was Big Ben sometime earlier in the season gave a pretty blunt assessment of his feelings for Field Turf.

But I guess like real grass there's differences in the quality of the Field Turf from one location to the next also.

And it seems to me that the number of ACL, MCL, etc. type injuries has spiked in recent years, consistent with the rise of Field Turf. No actual stats to back that up mind you, just my observation.

environment matters too ...the clink is always wet / and or watered down when not raining

i remember seeing that traumatic knee injuries are down when you compare fieldturf and polytan (supposedly the best, FIFA 2 star rated) to astroturf

the biggest controversy around those new surfaces is actually the offgassing and whether its material or "ingredients" are carcinogenic

pussification yah whatever ... grab a tampon i guess ... but teams should know their environment and the demands on their fields ... you just cant rely on grass to be the answer in all cities (i said pardon?)

 

[sabresfaninthesouth]

environment matters too ...the clink is always wet / and or watered down when not raining

i remember seeing that traumatic knee injuries are down when you compare fieldturf and polytan (supposedly the best, FIFA 2 star rated) to astroturf

the biggest controversy around those new surfaces is actually the offgassing and whether its material or "ingredients" are carcinogenic

pussification yah whatever ... grab a tampon i guess ... but teams should know their environment and the demands on their fields ... you just cant rely on grass to be the answer in all cities (i said pardon?)

No question that FT is an upgrade over old fashioned AstroTurf. I played soccer on that garbage a few times, and if you came down on anything other than your feet it hurt like hell.

The complaint I've read about the FT is essentially that spikes don't release from it properly like they do with natural grass. So when a guy gets hit in the knee on grass, his foot comes out from under him and he tweaks it. But when he gets hit on FT, his foot sticks and he's got a major knee injury.

And I say that if Phoenix and Green Bay can have real grass fields, any stadium can.

 

[jstewismybastardson]

And I say that if Phoenix and Green Bay can have real grass fields, any stadium can.

well glendale is a retractable dome so they can heavily control the elements and Green Bay is either in good shape or frozen (no in between)

 

[sabresfaninthesouth]

well glendale is a retractable dome so they can heavily control the elements and Green Bay is either in good shape or frozen (no in between)

That's why I picked Phoneix. Not only is it a dome, but it's also the hottest of any of the climates in the league.

 

[pixburgher66]

I don't think it's really fair to blame injuries on the turf/field. Most of the time they're freak accidents, a guy getting rolled up on, etc. Turf is just as dangerous as a muddy field, because you still play football on it. Obviously you don't play with large divets all over, etc, but over the course of a game it happens.

 

[Winged_Wheel88]

 

[Winged_Wheel88]

3400!