The 2023 NFL season is officially here, and it did not take long before dominating the headlines.
Former Packers quarterback and now New York Jet Aaron Rodgers led his new team out of the tunnel on Monday Night Football.
Carrying an American flag on the night of September 11th while running out to a screaming 65,000 fans imaginably had Roger Goodell and the NFL warlords in awe for a picture-perfect night…until…it wasn’t.
Four snaps in, the season, and maybe a career was ended thanks in large part to an ongoing debate for many years: Artificial turf.
Since 2015, according to a study, non-contact injuries on artificial turf have steadily increased well above that of natural grass.
Oddly enough, stadiums plan to remove the turf and substitute it with grass ahead of the 2026 World Cup when it comes to North America. So, good enough for soccer but not football? Make that make sense, please.
How many more injuries must the league witness before deciding to go away from fake grass? Enough is enough.
Congrats @nfl. How many more players have to get hurt on ARTIFICIAL TURF??! You care more about soccer players than us. You plan to remove all artificial turf for the World Cup coming up. So clearly it’s feasible.
I’m sick of this..Do better!— David Bakhtiari (@DavidBakhtiari) September 12, 2023
The Packers just witnessed one last season when Rashan Gary tore his ACL on that carpet in Detroit.
Plain and simple- the NFL needs to get rid of artificial turf. It has been an ongoing injury concern for so many, and with the world watching, arguably the most polarizing player was lost to a possible career-ending injury four snaps into his season.
If the NFL is willing to walk the talk they spew out yearly regarding player safety, then it’s well past time to fix the most straightforward problem in all sports.