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Buffalo Bills star Von Miller is using his platform to call for the NFL to make a big change in the name of player safety.
The All-Pro edge rusher joined the NFL Players Association in calling on the league to move away from artificial turf fields and change to natural grass. Miller teamed up with Pennington Grass Seed for a commercial released on April 27 — an ad that Miller said was rejected from airing during the NFL Draft later that night.
Von Miller Calls for Change
In the ad, Miller recalled the mixed feelings he felt after being drafted by the Denver Broncos, saying he was excited to start his NFL career but worried because he knew it could take a toll on his body. While Miller said he expected injuries along the way, he did not think it would be the artificial turf playing a role.
“The game will take a toll on your — twisted ankles, torn ACLs — your body pushed to the brink,” Miller said. “We all knew the risk when we signed up, but why do injuries have to come direct from the field?”
Miller then took aim at the league, saying he did not buy the argument.
“They try to say it’s safe, but we know,” Miller said. “We’re the ones out there battling on it. We need the real thing, real grass.”
After the NFLPA raised concerns about the safety of playing on artificial turf, the league released a statement saying there was no difference in safety between artificial surfaces and grass.
“As the NFLPA knows from the meeting of our Joint Field Surface Safety & Performance Committee earlier this month, there was no difference between the number of injuries on synthetic surfaces versus grass,” Jeff Miller, the NFL’s executive vice president of communications, public affairs and policy, said in a statement, via Pro Football Talk. “While slit-film surfaces, one type of synthetic material, have 2-3 more injuries per year, most of them are ankle sprains — a low-burden injury — whereas slit film also sees a lower rate of fewer high-burden ACL injuries compared to other synthetic fields. As a result, the league and NFLPA’s joint experts did not recommend any changes to surfaces at the meeting but agreed more study is needed.”
But Miller called on the league to change, saying it was needed to ensure player safety.
“It’s time to put the players first,” Miller said. “Get turf off the fields and bring back grass.”
Von Miller Familiar With Injuries
The commercial was spliced with footage of Miller’s rehab for various injuries, a familiar sight for the All-Pro edge rusher. Miller has suffered a number of injuries during his career, including an ACL tear suffered in last season’s Thanksgiving Day game against the Detroit Lions. Miller underwent season-ending surgery and has spent the offseason going through rehab to prepare for a return next season.
The Bills have given an optimistic update on Miller’s injury, with head coach Sean McDermott saying in March that Miller is on track with his rehab and general manager Brandon Beane hinting that he will be back early in the season.
“We think if everything goes well with rehab, we’ll have him for most of 2023,” Beane said in December, via Sal Maiorana of the Rochester Democrat & Chronicle.
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