Brandon Marshall: MetLife Stadium turf ‘ended my career’
Everyone around NFL circles knows that MetLife Stadium’s turf has been simply amongst the worst playing surfaces in the NFL. A lot of teams have to deal with the turf, since the New York Giants and the New York Jets both play here. Brandon Marshall, a wide receiver who played for both teams, recently said that an injury caused by this turf ended his career.
“I snapped my deltoid, freaking turf, oh my goodness I knew it was over,” the six-time Pro-Bowler said to Sports Doctor and Youtuber Doctor Mike. “There’s been a lot of players complaining about this turf … It’s really ruining careers, that was pretty much the last of me, I felt like I could’ve played a couple more years, but that play was over.”
Marshall is referring to an injury he sustained in his one and only season with the Giants in 2017. Marshall, who was in his 11th season when he signed with the Giants, played only seven more games with the Seahawks the next season to finish his career.
Fun fact: I was at the game where Brandon Marshall got injured. Four total New York Giants receivers, including Odell Beckham Jr., suffered injuries that game. It was not fun to watch.
The statistics on MetLife Stadium’s turf injuries are astounding. MetLife is one of a few stadiums around the league that used “Slit-film” turf. The NFLPA did a study in 2022 that confirmed that slit-film turfs are more dangerous for soft tissue tears than regular turf. As a result, the NFLPA begged MetLife Stadium to replace this type of surface.
A few years ago, Eagles center Jason Kelce also trashed the field.
“It’s a terrible surface,” Kelce said. “I’m surprised the league hasn’t stepped in at this point. But I think it’s really bad. There’s a higher injury rate on that surface for years now. I don’t know if it’s because there’s two teams playing on it or what’s going on there but it’s easily the least favorite.”
You know it’s bad when you have veterans like Kelce voicing this much displeasure. The player got their way, with MetLife Stadium announcing that they are going to replace the field for the 2023 season.
It’s interesting how one surface can be so poor compared to another. As long as Metlife gets this figured out, players will be glad that they made the switch.
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