Getty Eagles safety CJ Gardner-Johnson had 2 huge interceptions against Dallas in Week 6.
The idea that a slippery field contributed to the Philadelphia Eagles’ 38-35 loss in Super Bowl LVII keeps gaining traction — unlike the team’s many skilled pass rushers on that fateful Sunday in February.
Several players have gone on record about how much the field, which was likened to an ice skating rink, prevented them from getting to Patrick Mahomes. They were slipping and sliding on every snap, with plenty of visual evidence to support the claim. The Eagles tallied zero sacks in the game despite recording 78 of them in the regular season and playoffs.
Former Eagles safety C.J. Gardner-Johnson became the latest player to criticize the slippery turf after a report pinned the blame on the Eagles for not wearing the right cleats. Gardner-Johnson wrote: “If that’s the case we should’ve played on AZ original grass! We was fine the week we traveled there and won.” He’s not wrong. The Eagles beat the Cardinals 20-17 on October 9 at State Farm Stadium.
If that’s the case we should’ve played on AZ original grass! we was fine the week we traveled there and won 🙃
According to Pro Football Talk’s Mike Florio, the NFL is refusing to take ownership for the slippery field in Arizona. Privately, they are condemning the team’s equipment staff for not being prepared.
Florio wrote: “The NFL has an unofficial excuse for the situation, one that has been communicated when owners ask about it. Per a league source, the league blames the players for not wearing the right shoes. (The Eagles changed their cleats — and it didn’t seem to matter.)”
Meanwhile, the controversy about the playing conditions in Arizona has been a talking point throughout the offseason. Pro Bowl pass rusher Brandon Graham said the Kansas City Chiefs’ offensive line “got blessed,” adding that he saw Josh Sweat whiff on a couple of potential strip-sacks due to the slippery field.
“When we looked at the film, when I finally looked at it like, man, oh man,” Graham told JAKIB Sports. “We gonna get that on the get-back. It’s coming back. That’s coming back but, like I said, credit to Kansas City. It’s all love. Them boys, they played, too.”
Groundskeeper Says Super Bowl Turf ‘Overwatered’
George Toma — longtime NFL groundskeeper known as “The Sodfather” — claimed that the field at State Farm Stadium had been “overwatered” in an interview with ESPN on February 28.
His opinion was the issue was preventable and blamed NFL field director Ed Mangan for watering the “hell out of it” and throwing a tarp over it, thus hiding it from sunlight and causing the field to rot and decay. It should have been watered in the morning, then kept outside to dry. Toma told ESPN:
“It had a rotten smell,” he said.
Toma also alleged that Mangan did not sand the field enough.
“He sanded it two weeks too late,” Toma said. “He had only one sanding. He should have had two or three sandings, but he didn’t do s—. And that was it. And not only that, he didn’t take care of it. He wouldn’t listen to anybody.”
Jordan Mailata: ‘Like Playing on a Water Park’
Eagles and Chiefs players alike criticized the slippery turf in the aftermath of Super Bowl LVII. No one wanted to make excuses, but the reality of the situation was the conditions were less than ideal. Eagles left tackle Jordan Mailata compared it to playing on a water park.
“It was terrible,” Mailata told reporters, via Tyler Lauletta. “I’m no grass expert. It was just slick. You couldn’t anchor. You had to get your whole foot in the ground. If you try and use just your toe, it would slip right away. You saw the receivers. It was like a water park out there, and we’re playing on grass.”
Not the reason they lost but watch Sweat and Reddick. Field was unplayable.