NFLPA head: Players strongly want 'high quality' grass fields

ESPN
Jordan Raanan 
May 12, 2026, 12:00 PM ET


While NFL players watch some of their stadiums get new grass fields installed for upcoming FIFA World Cup games, it only reinforces their desire to move away from turf.

Fifteen of the 30 NFL stadiums use some sort of artificial turf for American football games. Players have become more vocal in recent years about their desire to play on grass.

"What we want is good grass fields. Good, solid fields," NFLPA executive director JC Tretter said recently on the "Not Just Football" podcast hosted by Pittsburgh Steelers defensive lineman Cam Heyward. "You don't just want to pull out the [municipal] golf course grass. On every field, you want high-quality surfaces. I think one thing is understanding what our players care about. And there is something there that the data hasn't been able to spit back out at us. Which if you ask every player that we polled, 1,700 players, 92% say they want grass over turf.

"There is something about the feeling of being on grass, the body feels different. I think if you ask the coaches, just standing on grass vs. standing on turf for three hours feels different. There is something there that impacts the body."
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