It was painful to witness Los Angeles Rams wide receiver Odell Beckham Jr. suffer another ACL injury in Super Bowl LVI.
He was on his way to having a career-defining game and could have won game MVP honors if he did not hit the showers early.
Worst, there were no defenders around him that may have induced the injury.
Instead, SoFi Stadium’s turf was immediately pointed out as the culprit by the San Francisco 49ers’ Deebo Samuel.
However, the movement that the versatile player ignited sparked other players to speak out, including Cleveland Browns running back Nick Chubb.
90% of NFL Players prefer real grass, including me! In 2020 I sprained my MCL on artificial turf. #FlipTheTurf to real grass with @PenningtonLawn and sign the petition: https://t.co/Rj6Z8gzOFu #PenningtonPartner pic.twitter.com/2bV3GVSzQo
— Nick Chubb (@NickChubb21) February 14, 2022
Just like Samuel, he’s petitioning for the NFL to stop the use of field turf and use real grass instead.
Making The Game Even Tougher
Football in itself is already a brutal game because of all the in-game physical contact.
That’s why careers can end in an instant with one tackle or injury.
While Beckham has recovered from an ACL injury in the past, the turf’s hardness makes it difficult for the players to stay healthy.
A wrong move may cause their knee or ankle to buckle and the turf won’t soften the impact.
It remains to be seen if this movement will gain ground in the coming months.
But if the league does the transition to real grass, they must act upon it as soon as possible.
Removing the old turf in exchange for grass won’t be an easy task because the new field must pass quality standards.
Maintaining it would be more challenging in certain areas given the four seasons of the year.
But if it will help protect the league’s most important commodity, the NFL must seriously consider making the shift to avoid freak injuries like Beckham’s.
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