NFLPA Want Slit Film Turf Ban
The NFLPA have put the NFL on notice that they no longer want to play on turf fields. The news comes after much talk in recent years about the number of injuries occurring on turf playing surfaces.
NFLPA Call For Ban Of Slit Film Turf
On Monday morning NFLPA President JC Tretter tweeted out a statement urging the NFL to take action towards improving the playing conditions for NFL players. Here’s the tweet:
Tretter links to his article on the NFLPA website which takes aim at the NFL for failing to outlaw the slit film turf surfaces and in turn putting their players at greater risk of injury.
The NFLPA President did not mince his words as he called out the NFL for their lack of care for the players. He said, “As players, we have a simple message for the league: stop with the lip service, stop with the media spin, stop pretending you care.” The message is clear, don’t tell us that you care – show us.
From a business point of view, AKA the NFL’s point of view, banning slit film turf and in turn reducing injuries is beneficial to them. In business terms, the players are the NFL’s most valuable assets, so keeping them healthy and on the field is in the National Football League’s best interests too. So this should be a no-brainer – ban slit film turf.
Why Do Players Want Slit Film Turf Banned
You may have been aware of the perception that more injuries happen on turf fields as opposed to grass fields. This has become a really big talking point over the past couple of years which comes back to our attention whenever a player gets injured playing on a turf field. So, is that perception true? Are there really more injuries on turf fields? Without a doubt yes, the data backs up the claims that there are more injuries on turf fields when compared to grass.
According to Tretter, the rate of non-contact knee injuries is 32% higher and the rate of foot or ankle injuries is 69% higher on turf surfaces compared to natural grass. The difference in injury rate is staggering so it is honestly surprising that the NFLPA haven’t issued the NFL an ultimatum on banning turf until now.
What Is Slit Film Turf?
I’ll be honest, I researched this and couldn’t find an easy way of explaining it (I still don’t understand it myself) but all we need to know is that the players think it is the worst kind of turf to play on and the injury rates back that up too. If you’re really curious, here’s what Google says, “Slit film fields have fibers created from a single piece of flat plastic which create a canopy over the infill“. Source.
It is also important to note that not all turf fields use slit film turf. An example of this is SoFi stadium, home to the Rams and Chargers which uses Matrix turf. Yeah, I know you’re wondering what that means. Once again, I don’t know either, but it sure sounds cool and apparently, it’s better than slit film turf.
Star Players Weigh In On Proposed Slit Film Turf Ban
There were plenty of NFL stars weighing in on the NFLPA’s statement about turf fields. All of the players are in support of the move and why wouldn’t they be given it is their safety and livelihoods we are talking about here.
Here’s what Packers Tackle David Bakhtiari had to say:
Rams star receiver Cooper Kupp also weighed in:
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What NFL Stadiums Have Slit Film Turf?
There are seven franchises in the NFL with slit film turf fields. Those are the Cincinatti Bengals, Indianapolis Colts, New York Giants and New York Jets, Detroit Lions, New Orleans Saints and Minnesota Vikings.
As you might have noticed from the list of teams above, turf is very much common among teams with dome stadiums. This is of course because grass needs sunlight to grow so would need to be outside for this to happen. It is also just cheaper and easier to maintain which is why some teams with outdoor stadiums use it too.
We have seen however in Arizona and Las Vegas that grass can be used with a closed roof stadium. The Cardinals and Raiders let the grass field grow outside and then roll it into the stadium. It’s quite impressive when you see how it all works, check out this YouTube video to see how the process works.
If and when the NFL agree to their player union’s request, we will likely see something similar to this process in some of these stadiums that currently play with slit film turf.
The timeline isn’t clear but banning slit film turf fields looks to be something that the players are adamant about. This should be a good move for all involved. Less injuries means that we would get to watch the stars of our league healthy and on the field more than we have in recent seasons.