Anyone who watched the wild card playoff game between the Seattle Seahawks and Washington Redskins, got a glimpse at how turf fields can go horribly wrong. While days before, the field had passed all of the NFL's field tests, on game day it simply was not a playable field.
Most of the coverage of this game is centered around RGIII's injury and if Mike Shanahan should have pulled him from the game. Too often, as in this case, we are focused on the wrong aspects of a story. That decision was between Mike, RGIII, and the team doctor. Argue it any way you'd like, unless you are one of those three people, we really can't properly assess that situation. The real focus should be on the field conditions, and the fact that they have seriously injured two players in this one game. Yes, I do think RGIII's injury was the result of the field.
If you watch the replay of both, RGIII's roll out in the red zone and the low snap that ultimately led to him leaving the game, it seems that his cleats get caught up on the turf. Perhaps this is merely my opinion, however Chris Clemons of the Seahawks also injured his ACL in what looks to be an issue of his cleats not being able to disengage from the turf. We now have two players whose off season will be severely hampered by these injuries. Instead of improving technique or studying film, these two will be focused on rehabilitation after surgery.
With the intense push for safety in the NFL by Roger Goodell, this issue cannot be ignored. There will always be the arguement of grass vs. turf. However look to the Green Bay Packers, who have a grass field infused with sinthetic fibers. Their field looked perfectly fine for their game this past weekend. And quite frankly, it is one of the best fields in the game today. Perhaps the answers aren't there yet, but if safety really is the #1 priority for the NFL, no player should step foot on a field in the condition that FedEX field was on Sunday.
While i understand top story headlines will always grab your attention, I applaud the anylists who have focused on the real issue in this story.
I wish both RGIII and Chris Clemons a speedy recovery and hope they return in the 2013 season at 100%.
Phinland Pride,
Kyle Gilmore
The only thing that Roger Goodell is concerned about is lining the pockets of the owners and his own. Safety in the league is put second to money. The field was a mockery and should not have been played on
ReplyDeleteI think our first podcast, whenever we can make that work, should be on Roger Goodell. I, believe it or not, am a supporter of his. I think that would be fun.
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