NASHVILLE, Tenn. (WKRN) — The injury to New York Jets quarterback Aaron Rodgers Monday night at MetLife Stadium sparked outrage across the NFL, mainly from players who are speaking out against artificial turf.
The Titans shared the same sentiment, with many of them believing their concerns may never be addressed.
“If the statistics show that grass is better, I don’t see why we, you know, teams aren’t making an investment to go out and play on grass,” said Titans safety Kevin Byard. “At the end of the day, this is a business and owners or whatever, they’re going to do what they feel like is best for their business, but us as players, we’re always going to say we need to be on grass, and I think there needs to be a change.”
This offseason, the Titans installed synthetic turf with organic infill at Nissan Stadium, making the stadium the first in the NFL to do so. Although data suggests synthetic turf will be safer for the players, they still prefer grass.
“Just easier on your body, you know, your joints, your skin, all of it,” quarterback Ryan Tannehill said. “Turf is just kind of hard on you. They’ve had a lot of improvements over the years, but at the end of the day, it’s just harder on your body all across the board.”
The Titans will host the Los Angeles Chargers Sunday on their new artificial turf. Kickoff is set for noon.