Monday Night Field Conditions

Did any of you watch the Monday Night Football Field conditions in Pittsburgh during the Steelers-Dolphins game?

For those of you who did not see it, prior to the game there were very heavy rains. Compounding the problem was an entire layer of fresh sod which was laid on the field just a few days before the game.

The fresh sod did not take root and did not allow proper drainage. There was standing pools of water on the field. When players were even walking in the fresh sod, they left 2-3" footprints.

Pittsburgh made a field goal in the final minute to win the game 3-0. As you would expect by the low score, the conditions made the play very sloppy.

I had to cringe for the field maintenance crew. For three spring-summer seasons, I was the Field Maintenance Coordinator for the local Little League in our community. This included both baseball and softball teams.

I organized other parent volunteers in mowing, raking, and marking lines for six diamonds. I especially remember trying to rake and dry the dirt portions of the diamonds during the Oregon rainy spring weather.

Those field maintenance guys must have been sick to have seen the field ripped up like that. :(

It is ridiculous that the Steelers allow Heinz Field to be used for multiple high school/college games during the weekend immediately prior to an NFL game.

That field would've been a mess without the rain...with the rain, it was nothing short of comedy. The players could not get any traction whatsoever, and the running games were mostly useless. I'm surprised the teams did not adjust to a short passing attack exclusively...because the receivers were the only ones with any advantage last night on the edges where the field wasn't a pig pen. Big Ben completed 18 of 21 passes...he should have been tossing the ball all night long as there was no wind to really affect the passing game.

I don't know if that was the problem necessarily. Bad timing more than anything. They resodded last night and then got a ton of rain. Oh well! That's football. I loved it. Of course, it helped my fantasy team win this week (I had Pittsburgh's defense).
:D

Ridiculous game when you see the punt stick into the ground instead of bouncing.

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Originally Posted by HarveyWallbangers

I don't know if that was the problem necessarily.

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What?

They played 4 high school games on the field...then a college game. Why do you think the Steelers tried to lay a entire new layer of sod over the old stuff? Green Bay had to do that every other year it seemed...and they didn't let high school and college teams come in and rip Lambeau's sod up.

A grass football field simply can't sustain that kind of action in colder climates late in the year. Grass doesn't grow much by that point, and the field can't repair itself as quickly. Resodding isn't an answer either...as both Green Bay and now Pittsburgh have found out.

Pittsburgh needs to go with Fieldturf if they continue to allow the field to be played on by numerous entities. Having an NFL game played in a mud pit is not acceptable IMO.

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Originally Posted by The Leaper

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Originally Posted by HarveyWallbangers

I don't know if that was the problem necessarily.

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What?

They played 4 high school games on the field...then a college game. Why do you think the Steelers tried to lay a entire new layer of sod over the old stuff? Green Bay had to do that every other year it seemed...and they didn't let high school and college teams come in and rip Lambeau's sod up.

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If they didn't have the rain, it wouldn't have been a problem. The rain was more of the issue than anything. A lot of teams have to do this anyways throughout the year. It has happened to Green Bay, and they don't let high school teams play on their field.

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Originally Posted by Partial

Ridiculous game when you see the punt stick into the ground instead of bouncing.

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Yeah that was one of the craziest things I've ever seen..

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Originally Posted by HarveyWallbangers

If they didn't have the rain, it wouldn't have been a problem.

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The sod would not have taken root, and it would've torn up in huge chunks just like it did in Lambeau when they would try to resod the field late in the year. Sure, it wouldn't have been as bad as it was with all the rain...but it would not have been good either.

The bottom line is that no sod is going to take root in late November north of the Mason Dixon line in the course of a week or two...and opens up Pandora's Box any time it starts precipitating.

Green Bay was always extremely careful about their sod...scheduled resoddings as far in advance of a game day as possible. The field still came up in chunks and the footing was miserable. That is why we now have Fieldturf in Lambeau.

If the careful prep of our grounds crew couldn't maintain a 100% grass field properly, what makes you believe Pittsburgh can do better...with CONSIDERABLY greater usage?

Sorry Harvey. There is no way you can justify maintaining a 100% grass field in Pittsburgh's climate while maintaining a vigorous usage schedule. What we saw on Monday Night is one of the results...no different from the 49er playoff game debacle in Lambeau in the mid 90s.

I watched a bit of the game and had to laugh....and think about that night all those years ago when we beat the crap out of the Bears on MNF. What a Halloween that was.

The field was a mess but so what...thats how it should be..the teams have to adapt to win. The only problem for the fans was they did not adapt.

Had I known that I'd have watched the game. I LOVE mudball!! The sloppier the better. Maybe it will be on NFL replay this week...yeah, right!

I would bet next year the Steelers go to a synthetic blend.

I watched that whole game because it was fun watching these guys slip and slide all over the place.

You'd think a team from Miami would thrive in heavy rain. :P

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Originally Posted by Deputy Nutz

I watched that whole game because it was fun watching these guys slip and slide all over the place.

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It is fun...but honestly, it is not a good situation for competitive balance or for extended viewing. The Dolphins had a far better chance to win that game than they should have had due to the conditions. It really wasn't fun to watch after 5 minutes either.

While we all love to see great athletes look like mere mortals, it is more enjoyable to watch them be able to utilize all of their tremendous physical abilities. The Bronco-Packer Monday Night game was infinitely more entertaining...even for just an average NFL fan who didn't follow either team. I know...I watched the game with a couple of them who said it was an awesome game just to watch.

The players on the field decided that game, not the field itself.

*waiting for someone to post the punt that dropped dead in the mud*

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Originally Posted by Numb

*waiting for someone to post the punt that dropped dead in the mud*

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go to nfl.com and look at the postgame video. it's there to see in all its glory.

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Originally Posted by The Leaper

no different from the 49er playoff game debacle in Lambeau in the mid 90s.

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Was that really a debacle?

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Originally Posted by mraynrand

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Originally Posted by The Leaper

no different from the 49er playoff game debacle in Lambeau in the mid 90s.

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Was that really a debacle?

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Not to us. 8-)

The field was a mess...even our players were complaining about it. Sure, it was to our advantage slightly...but that doesn't mean players like running around on a field with little to no traction.

If I remember correctly Edgar Bennett loved to play is horrible field conditions. He had some of his best games in sloppy and muddy fields. I think there was a Monday night game against Chicago where the field was muddy and it was raining and he got over 100 yards on the ground. That's what football is all about!

The horrible field conditions were the only thing that made that game worth watching.

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Originally Posted by LL2

If I remember correctly Edgar Bennett loved to play is horrible field conditions. He had some of his best games in sloppy and muddy fields. I think there was a Monday night game against Chicago where the field was muddy and it was raining and he got over 100 yards on the ground. That's what football is all about!

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Bennett had one of his best games as a Packer in that rainy, muddy, playoff game against the 49er's. Desmond Howard received a lot of publicity for a couple of big returns but it was Bennett who kept the drives going with his sure-footed running in terrible field conditions.

A postscript.

Ricky Williams tore a chest muscle and is out for the year after playing part of one game.

That was a goofy one, I watched it for about 10 minutes.

The plugged football on the punt was hilarious!

I only saw the replay (thanks for posting about it), but I thought it was funny watching everyone running down with the ball and trying to switch gears when it didn't bounce....

Yet more horseshit youtube quality: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x7DTNEa2E7w

Funny too, this is the second time Miami has had to deal with these conditions - the game in London, England had similar conditions, IIRC. Probably not what the NFL had in mind to showcase their game.

You guys do realize that that's the same surface our guys play on? Desso GrassMaster. Just installed in Lambeau this past offseason.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/DD_GrassMaster

We're the only two NFL teams that use this fiber-enhanced grass surface.

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Originally Posted by ny10804

We're the only two NFL teams that use this fiber-enhanced grass surface.

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Then why did they put real sod over it prior to the Monday night game? That makes no sense whatsoever.

I know Philly also has the same field surface that we do...and there is no mention of that field on the Wikipedia listing. Is that listing accurate? I'm also fairly positive there are more than 2 NFL teams that utilize this synthetic-enhanced grass surface.

And who resods the day before gameday. Did they not know heavy rains were expected? What did they think was gonna happen?