One of the biggest points of conversation that has emerged this NFL season is the amounts of injuries caused by playing on artificial turf. The conversation has brought more players calling for the NFL and owners to switch from turf fields to grass ones, which helps prevent more injuries, particularly lower body ones.
Many NFL stars have fallen thanks to the turf this season, starting with New York Jets quarterback Aaron Rodgers tearing his achilles on his first drive of the season. Aside from Rodgers, Justin Jefferson, Jaelan Phillips, Daniel Jones, Kirk Cousins, and Matt Milano are among the key players to go down with such injuries.
The injury to Jefferson in particular is sparking change for the Minnesota Vikings. Jefferson suffered a non-contact hamstring injury back in early October, which caused the fourth-year receiver to go on IR and miss seven games. Prior to his injury, Jefferson was on a historic early season pace, putting up 149+ yards in each of the Vikings' first three games.
Since this, the Vikings have announced that they will be switching from slit-film turf to Act Global Xtreme Turf DX, per ESPN's Kevin Seifert. Though this will not be a change to grass like many players wish, the new turf has a lower rate of injuries.
According to Vikings executive vice president and chief business administration officer, U.S Bank Stadium is unable to produce grass, which is why they are not completely switching from turf. “U.S. Bank Stadium was built as a multipurpose facility,” Poppen said. “It was designed for artificial surface. We don't have the ability to grow grass in that stadium right now,” via ESPN.
The new field will be ready in time for the 2024 NFL season. This change isn't a complete win for players because it's not grass, but will hopefully provide an improvement.
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