FedEx Field: an embarrasment.

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

RGIII Injures Knee Again

RGIII Injury

In what looked like an aggravation of an injury from a few weeks ago, Robert Griffin III left the field in the Wild Card game against the Seattle Seahawks with only a few minutes left in the 4th quarter of the game. The initial injury took place some weeks ago against the Baltimore Ravens. After missing just one game, he came back and played the last couple of the season, albeit not at full health. Early in the game there was reason for concern as he was struggling pushing off of his leg to throw, and to run. Mike Shanahan left him in despite the obvious limitations of his quarterback. 

Coming off of a sack in the 4th quarter and a loss of 12 yards, he was visibly shaken and probably should have been taken out of the game. Once again, despite him clearly being in pain, he was left in. The next play (see the video) that would happen could change the course of this young man's career, even as early into it as he is. A low snap saw Griffin trying to scoop the ball off of the ground and his knee gave out. I'm no expert on the subject, but at the least I would say he has an MCL tear, and most likely an ACL tear as well. This could be devastating to his season next year, as an ACL tear can take up to a whole year to heal. Although RGIII is a threat to throw the ball at all times, what makes him dangerous is the fact that he can pull the ball down and run at any time. This occupies one defensive player at all times if they decide to try to contain him by using a spy on defense. So while I expect him to make a full recovery, I don't see him being the offensive force he was this year if he ends up with these significant injuries at least for next year and possibly well into the future. Luckily for Washington, they look to have secured a good backup in Kirk Cousins, as he has shown to be effective in limited playing time.

I hope for his sake that he makes a full recovery, but I can't help shaking the feeling that the whole situation was terribly mishandled by the entire coaching staff and medical staff that were on hand for this game. If his knee wasn't already shredded after the sack, it was after it gave out going after the low snap. He had no business still being in that game!