From time to time, players make it clear that they want to play only on grass. Those complaints fall on deaf ears among those who would have to pay for the installation and proper maintenance of grass fields.
The league isn’t interested in mandating a change from fake to real. While teams can choose to do so if they want, the league isn’t going to force the issue.
Per a source with knowledge of the situation, the relevant health and safety presentation at the annual meetings in Arizona glossed over the issues of actual grass over dirt vs. plastic over cushioning over concrete, with in many cases an ocean of potentially toxic and/or carcinogenic rubber pellets.
The league’s failure to take a closer look at the potential benefits of playing all games on grass comes at a time when the league continues to be determined to strip away more and more aspects of the kickoff and punt return, in the hopes of making a dangerous play safer. And there’s a theory that needs to be further explored when it comes to whether changes are truly necessary to kickoffs and punts.
There’s an effort underway, we’re told, to shift the focus regarding the safety of such plays. It’s possible that the kickoff and the punt result in higher injury rates (specifically, concussions and knee injuries) on artificial turf than on grass. Those numbers are being studied and compiled in this regard.
Anecdotally, some already believe that it’s more about the surface and less about the play. As one source put it, the NFL wants to change some of the fundamental rules of football because the NFL is unwilling to change the playing surfaces.
The NFL is unwilling to change the playing surfaces because it’s harder and more expensive to get grass right. When it comes to the World Cup, and all the money that the stadiums owned and/or operated by NFL teams can make from installing grass surfaces to replace fake ones for soccer matches, the owners are bending over backward. When it comes to permanently using grass in the name of player safety, the money won’t be spent.
Quite possibly, the NFL is willing to make fundamental changes to the game at a time when simply changing the surface would address the concerns and allow the kickoff and the punt to continue to have relevance. More will be known when the data is compiled.
Some are hoping that the information will confirm that changing surfaces would address these concerns, and that the focus will become installing grass everywhere instead of further undermining special teams by making more changes to kickoff and punt plays.
