Browns legend Joe Thomas doesn't think Aaron Rodgers suffers the same fate on grass
Cleveland Browns legend and NFL Hall of Fame inductee Joe Thomas knows a thing — or two — about playing surfaces in and around the NFL. And following a devastating Achilles tear to New York Jets quarterback Aaron Rodgers, Thomas posted on X — formerly known as Twitter — that the type of injury Rodgers suffered […]
Cleveland Browns legend and NFL Hall of Fame inductee Joe Thomas knows a thing — or two — about playing surfaces in and around the NFL.
And following a devastating Achilles tear to New York Jets quarterback Aaron Rodgers, Thomas posted on X — formerly known as Twitter — that the type of injury Rodgers suffered wouldn't have happened on a grass field.
"I don't think this injury happens on a grass field," Thomas wrote.
Thomas' post was in response to David Bakhtiari, who lambasted the NFL when he wrote: "How many more players have to get hurt on ARTIFICIAL TURF?! You care more about soccer players than us. You plan to remove all artificial turf for the World Cup coming up. So clearly it's feasible. I'm sick of this… Do better!"
The injury to Rodgers has reinvigorated discussions over artificial turf in the NFL. Players believe that the surfacing of many NFL stadiums has led to an increase in injuries around the league.
A recent study by the National Center for Health Research shows that Achilles tears are twice as likely on artificial grass than on grass fields.
The NFL Players Association also released a statement in which they assert "players have a 28% higher rate of non-contact lower extremity injuries when playing on artificial turf. Of those non-contact injuries, players have a 32% higher rate of non-contact knee injuries on turf and a staggering 69% higher rate of non-contact foot/ankle injuries on turf compared to grass."
So maybe Thomas is right, the injury to Rodgers may not have happened on grass. Or maybe it could have.
Either way, the outpouring of support for Rodgers and the renewed battle over turf versus grass will be in the lexicon of public football discussion for some time. And in the eyes of a Browns legend and now Hall of Fame inductee, the thing to blame is clearly the turf.
Feature image via Ken Blaze-USA TODAY Sports.
