NFL players have asked for years to make grass fields mandatory at their stadiums -- this summer, they are, but for another reason.Seven NFL stadiums that use artificial turf have transformed their playing surfaces to grass for FIFA regulations during the World Cup.Half the league’s stadiums use turf, despite NFLPA Executive Director Lloyd Howell saying that 92% of the league’s players prefer grass.CLICK HERE FOR MORE SPORTS COVERAGE ON FOXNEWS.COMAndrew Whitworth #77 of the Los Angeles Rams celebrates following Super Bowl LVI at SoFi Stadium on February 13, 2022 in Inglewood, California.(Kevin C.
Cox/Getty Images)Understandably so, Super Bowl champion offensive lineman Andrew Whitworth said he "would definitely be" annoyed with the league if he were still playing."I don't think there's any doubt about it, only because we've voiced so much that we'd love to have it," Whitworth admitted."I get it.Here's the reality -- when you look at these stadiums, they're entertainment venues.
They're not just for football.From the Taylor Swift tour to you name it, everything happens there.
So when you say, all right, from an owning-a-building standpoint, from this being able to operate as a venue like that, I get it.To be able to have concerts, to be able to have all the events they want to have there, you need a harder surface.
So you understand that part of it."But one of the reasons that Whitworth was "jacked up" to be a Ram was that his division opponents played on grass in their home stadiums.Even when he first signed, the Rams were on grass at the Los Angeles Coliseum.The NFL logo is displayed on the field after the game between the Philadelphia Eagles and Buffalo Bills at Highmark Stadium in Orchard Park, New York, on Dec.
28, 2025.(Nic Antaya/Getty Images)WATCH THE WORLD CUP FINAL ON FOX ONEAt this point, plenty of studies about injuries and playing surfaces are conflicting, but Whitworth said it goes far beyond actual injuries."We could nitpick every surface ...