Roger Goodell Claims Some NFL Players Prefer Artificial Turf to Natural Grass

The NFL commissioner says some athletes believe artificial turf is a faster surface.

Following Aaron Rodgers’s season-ending injury, uproar is growing over the prevalence of artificial turf throughout the NFL. Yet commissioner Roger Goodell claims that some players actually prefer turf to natural grass.

“You have other players who like playing on the turf field because it’s faster,” Goodell said during a Wednesday appearance on ESPN’s First Take, per Sports Illustrated’s Albert Breer. “So you’ve got mixed opinions. What we want to go on is science, we want to go on what’s the best from an injury standpoint.” 

Goodell’s comment came shortly after NFL Players Association executive director Lloyd Howell called for all 32 NFL teams to use natural grass for their playing surfaces.

“The players overwhelmingly prefer [natural grass] and the data is clear that grass is simply safer than artificial turf,” said Howell. “It is an issue that has been near the top of the players’ list during my team visits and one I have raised with the NFL.”

NFL commissioner Roger Goodell contends that some players prefer artificial turf to natural grass :: Michael Chow/USA TODAY Network

One NFL player who was particularly outspoken in suggesting that artificial turf caused Rodgers’s injury was former Packers teammate David Bakhtiari, who wondered in a tweet how many more players had to be injured by turf before changes are made.