Super Bowl grass: ‘I’m not going to lie: It’s the worst field I’ve ever played on’

GLENDALE, Ariz. — Haason Reddick didn’t want to come off as someone who made excuses, but watch the tape, the Philadelphia linebacker said. It will reveal the truth.

“A couple times I had a good pass rush, felt like I beat my man, trying to turn the corner and couldn’t turn the corner,” Reddick said.

Certain themes surfaced during Kansas City’s 38-35 Super Bowl win on Sunday night at State Farm Stadium. The brilliance of Patrick Mahomes, of course. A controversial late defensive holding penalty that led to the winning field goal.

[Live updates from Super Bowl LVII.]

And the field surface. That’s right. The grass.

“I’m not going to lie: It was the worst field I’ve ever played on,” Reddick said. “… It was very disappointing. It’s the NFL. You would think it would be better so we could get some better play, but it is what it is. I don’t know. Maybe the league will look at it and tell Arizona they got to step their stuff up.”

This didn’t just come from the Philadelphia side. Kansas City had issues, too. Players slipped throughout the contest. Eagles kicker Jake Elliott fell after a kickoff. Philadelphia receiver A.J. Brown lost his footing after a catch. Players from both sides changed cleats, some after warmups, others after halftime.

Eagles left tackle Jordan Mailata said he was no grass expert, but the field was “definitely subpar.” Per the Philly Voice, Mailata said Philadelphia and Kansas City linemen discussed how bad it was during timeouts while waiting to line up for the next play. He said it was like playing “on a water park.”

The turf, Tahoma 31, is a mix of two types of Bermuda grass and ryegrass. According to an ESPN story from before the Super Bowl, the grass was chosen because it has a high tolerance for cold, drought, disease and wear. It also recovers better from foot traffic. NFL field surface director Nick Pappas told ESPN that Tahoma 31 was one of the “strongest varieties of hybrid Bermuda grass that you can get.”

State Farm Stadium is unique in that the grass can be placed on a tray and rolled in and out of the stadium. Leading up to the Super Bowl, it sat outside during the day where it could get watered and treated. Then at night, it was rolled back in under the roof — State Farm Stadium also has a retractable roof — to protect it from cooler temperatures.

The NFL has spent two years preparing the grass for tonight's field at the Super Bowl.

The grass was grown at a local sod farm in Phoenix.

It was installed two weeks ago, and the field has been rolled out each morning for daily sunshine.

Total cost = $800,000 pic.twitter.com/Um8zZala2O

— Joe Pompliano (@JoePompliano) February 12, 2023

After September’s Week 1 victory over the Arizona Cardinals at State Farm Stadium, Kansas City coach Andy Reid suggested the grass contributed to injuries to kicker Harrison Butker and cornerback Trent McDuffie. But the turf used for Sunday’s game was different. Grown at West Coast Turf in nearby Scottsdale, the sod was brought in specifically for the Super Bowl. Not that it seemed to do much better.

Chiefs defensive end Frank Clark called the field conditions “kind of terrible” and said as the game unfolded, he just started digging his feet into the turf to help his footing because he was slipping so much.

“A lot of these stadiums, they’re trying these new tactics and stuff with the grass,’’ Clark said. “I’ve been playing football since I was 7. The best grass I ever played on was grass that’s naturally there. The best grass I ever played on was grass that doesn’t move, that doesn’t get shifted inside and outside.”

Kansas City defensive end Carlos Dunlap said he noticed younger teammates slipping around the painted logo at midfield, so he suggested they change cleats. Philadelphia tight end Dallas Goedert said he changed shoes at halftime. Asked about the field, Eagles quarterback Jalen Hurts said simply: “I have a number of pairs of cleats, so I find a way.”

At its roots, football is a battle of survival. Sometimes that stretches beyond the 22 players and into other areas. Sometimes it rains. Sometimes it snows. And sometimes the field isn’t the best. The best teams adjust.

“It’s not like we were playing on ice and they were playing on grass,” Eagles coach Nick Sirianni said. “You do your best to figure out the playing surface as soon as you possibly can. Sometimes you have to change cleats in the middle of the game … in the same way if you had to change a game plan or change a play, whatever you have to do. But it had nothing to do with anything. We just had to get used to it.”

Eagles center Jason Kelce agreed.

“It could’ve been a better field, for sure,’’ he said. “But one of the beautiful things about football is you play the conditions of the day. This is a dome, so you should always kind of probably have a good field, but I like when it’s raining and snowing. The teams that adjust on the day are the teams that end up deserving to win.”

(Photo of Patrick Mahomes: Rob Carr / Getty Images)