Patrick Mahomes makes stance clear on turf vs natural grass fields in NFL after Aaron Rodgers' Achilles injury
After Aaron Rodgers' shocking injury, Patrick Mahomes wants grass fields on all NFL stadiums, if his recent social media activity is an indication to go by.
It has been two days since Aaron Rodgers potentially ended his career on a brutally painful note, tearing his Achilles tendon in his New York Jets debut against the Buffalo Bills.
MetLife Stadium, the venue for the game, uses a synthetic turf, which has been criticized for causing leg injuries for years, many of them season-ending.
On Wednesday, Lloyd Howell, executive director of the NFL Players Association issued a statement:
"Moving all stadium fields to high-quality natural grass surfaces is the easiest decision the NFL can make. The players overwhelmingly prefer it and the data is clear that grass is simply safer than artificial turf.
"It is an issue that has been near the top of the players' list during my team visits and one I have raised with the NFL.
"While we know there is an investment to making this change, there is a bigger cost to everyone in our business if we keep losing our best players to unnecessary injuries.
It makes no sense that stadiums can flip over to superior grass surfaces when the World Cup comes, or soccer clubs come to visit for exhibition games in the summer, but inferior artificial surfaces are acceptable for our own players. This is worth the investment and it simply needs to change now."
Mahomes later expressed his support by reposting the statement:
Which NFL teams play on natural grass and artificial turf?
Quite fortunately for Patrick Mahomes, Arrowhead Stadium, the home of his Kansas City Chiefs, has been using natural grass (specifically the Bermuda variety) since its opening in 1972.
In fact, including the Chiefs, almost half of all NFL teams use actual grass, while the rest use synthetic turf (the New York Jets and Giants and the Los Angeles Rams and Chargers share the same venue).
Here is a more comprehensive table of the playing surface that every NFL team uses:
- Arizona Cardinals State Farm Stadium: Bermuda grass
- Atlanta Falcons: Mercedes-Benz Superdome: FieldTurf CORE
- Baltimore Ravens M&T Bank Stadium: Bermuda grass
- Buffalo Bills Highmark Stadium: A-Turf Titan
- Carolina Panthers Bank of America Stadium: FieldTurf
- Chicago Bears Soldier Field: Bermuda grass
- Cincinnati Bengals Paycor Stadium: UBU Speed Series S5-M Synthetic Turf
- Cleveland Browns FirstEnergy Stadium: Kentucky bluegrass
- Dallas Cowboys AT&T Stadium: Hellas Matrix Turf
- Denver Broncos Empower Field at Mile High: Kentucky bluegrass
- Detroit Lions Ford Field: FieldTurf Classic HD
- Green Bay Packers Lambeau Field: GrassMaster (a mixture of natural grass and artificial turf)
- Houston Texans NRG Stadium: Hellas Matrix Turf
- Indianapolis Colts Lucas Oil Stadium: Shaw Sports Momentum Pro
- Jacksonville Jaguars TIAA Bank Field: Bermuda grass
- Kansas City Chiefs GEHA Field at Arrowhead Stadium: Bermuda grass
- Las Vegas Raiders Allegiant Stadium: Bermuda grass
- Los Angeles Chargers SoFi Stadium: Hellas Matrix Turf
- Los Angeles Rams SoFi Stadium: Hellas Matrix Turf
- Miami Dolphins Hard Rock Stadium: Bermuda grass
- Minnesota Vikings U.S. Bank Stadium: UBU Speed Series S5-M (turf)
- New England Patriots Gillette Stadium: FieldTurf CORE
- New Orleans Saints Caesar's Superdome: FieldTurf Revolution 360
- New York Giants MetLife Stadium: UBU Sports Speed Series S5-M
- New York Jets MetLife Stadium: UBU Sports Speed Series S5-M
- Philadelphia Eagles Lincoln Financial Field: GrassMaster
- Pittsburgh Steelers Acrisure Stadium: Kentucky bluegrass
- San Francisco 49ers Levi's Stadium: Bermuda grass and Perennial Ryegrass mixture
- Seattle Seahawks Lumen Field: FieldTurf Revolution 360
- Tampa Bay Buccaneers Raymond James Stadium: Bermuda grass
- Tennessee Titans Nissan Stadium: Hellas Matrix Turf
- Washington Commanders FedExField: Bermuda grass
The Tennessee Titans previously used Bermuda grass until 2022, after which they switched to artificial turf, ironically citing increased lower-body injury rates.