Rodgers’ ‘unplayable’ claim followed by strong | Sports News

Players from the Pittsburgh Steelers and Cleveland Browns shortly expressed their frustrations to the NFL Players Association concerning the “embarrassing” subject situations at Acrisure Stadium. After the Steelers’ 23-9 victory over the Browns – a sport the place rookie quarterback Dillon Gabriel discovered little success within the passing sport – veteran signal-caller Aaron Rodgers harshly criticized Pittsburgh’s home turf as “borderline unplayable.”

Multiple instances all through Sunday’s matchup, gamers have been seen churning up soil and grass chunks whereas making an attempt to make explosive performs downfield. With below 4 minutes left within the remaining quarter, Steelers kicker Chris Boswell slipped on the turf during a 54-yard subject aim attempt. Meanwhile, particular groups captain Miles Killebrew sustained a “significant” non-contact knee harm when trying to plant his foot.

“It got real beat up,” Rodgers informed reporters during a postgame press convention concerning the subject situations. “By the time the third quarter rolled around, that thing was really beat up. So I feel bad about what happened to Miles. I’m not sure if there was any carry there.” Meanwhile, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers obtained an Emeka Egbuka harm replace after he huge receiver underwent exams on his birthday.

“Thankfully, [Chris Boswell] took care of those kicks before the field got borderline unplayable,” Rodgers concluded. It appears Rodgers wasn’t the one participant upset with the enjoying situations. Multiple Steelers and Browns gamers contacted the NFL Players Association to voice their “outrage” about Acrisure Stadium’s subject, in response to a union source.

“The NFLPA has conveyed its concern to the NFL and will work to ensure that players are not put in that position going forward,” the insider informed ESPN’s Brooke Pryor on Wednesday.

The NFL seems to have listened to gamers’ grievances, with spokesperson Brian McCarthy revealing that the league has “been in touch with both the union and the club, which has taken steps to replace the grass surface.”

In latest months, followers, gamers and pundits alike have weighed in on the raging debate surrounding the use of turf or grass in NFL stadiums. Steelers defensive lineman Cameron Heyward, for one, prefers grass enjoying surfaces so long as they’re effectively stored. “Honestly, it was s—,” he mentioned on Tuesday.

“I lost one of my teammates and kind of makes me sad about it. Heyward added, “I like grass, however that wasn’t grass for taking part in.” One NFLPA source expressed a similar sentiment, stating: “Players desire grass fields, however all grass surfaces aren’t equal.

“The conditions at Acrisure Stadium underscore why players have pushed for high-quality grass fields, and why the NFLPA continues to push for improved, shared maintenance practices of grass fields across the league.”

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Some of the duty for Acrisure Stadium’s subpar subject situations could be traced to the truth that the University of Pittsburgh additionally makes use of the stadium as its home venue. However, within the week previous Sunday’s matchup, neither the Steelers nor the Panthers had competed there.

Nevertheless, Pitt nonetheless held 4 of its first 5 video games of the 2025 season on the facility, whereas the Steelers performed only one home contest earlier than their Week 6 conflict towards the Browns.

Moving ahead, Steelers head coach Mike Tomlin declared that he is “not concerned” concerning the subject situations. “I thought it was poor [Sunday],” he mentioned.

“I’m not concerned going forward. It’s my understanding that that turf is going to be swapped out, but I certainly acknowledge it was a concern yesterday.”