Even artificial turf could use a blanket this time of year.
Week 15’s matchup against the Atlanta Falcons will mark the first December home game of the season for the Carolina Panthers. And with the weather outside becoming a tad frightful (or at least a lot colder), the field over at Bank of America Stadium is apparently getting some extra attention . . .
Panthers using a blanket-type device over BoA Stadium to help keep the field/turf warm. Smart given the condition of the turf for the Lions' game on Dec. 24 last year when NFLPA called it "unsafe."
— Joe Person (@josephperson) December 13, 2023
As Person notes, the field conditions during last year’s Christmas Eve clash with the Detroit Lions were, well, less than ideal. In what was the coldest home game in franchise history, the frosty Bank of America Stadium turf received blistering reviews from Lions players and, eventually, the NFL Players Association.
NFLPA president J.C. Tretter penned a scathing indictment of the field back in April:
We currently have a single test for all field surfaces called the “Clegg” test, which simply measures a field’s hardness. While we are working diligently and collaboratively with the NFL’s engineering experts to devise more advanced ways to measure field performance and safety, this test is all that we currently have. However, even this simple measure was too much for the NFL to adhere to when push came to shove in Carolina.
Last year on Christmas Eve, Carolina’s field failed the Clegg test. For a surface to pass this test, it must measure below 100g (units of gravities), and the meter for this test goes up to a maximum of 150g. When the field in Carolina was tested during the pregame check, it came back as — you guessed it — 150g.
Players reached out and told us the field was way too hard, describing it as concrete. Players reported that they couldn’t even wear cleats because they wouldn’t sink into the turf. When we reached out to the league, they told us they were aware of these concerns and were working to remedy them.
However, instead of delaying the game or finding another way to fix the issue, the league gave the green light to kick off the game as scheduled. Afterward, the league told us that late in the first half, the field finally did fall below the 100g max. But the fact remains that the players in that game had to play on a field that the league acknowledges was not safe. That is beyond frustrating to players and unacceptable in the eyes of our union.
While he did tell reporters on Wednesday that the “blanket-type device” was there to keep the turf warm, interim head coach Chris Tabor could not confirm if the use of that device is related to those complaints.
