Buffalo Bills cornerback Taron Johnson thankfully avoided serious injury in the loss to the Jacksonville Jaguars on Sunday morning, but he had some critical comments about the playing field in London.
As part of the NFL's London Series, the Bills took on the Jaguars at Tottenham Hotspur stadium on an artificial turf surface; the stadium usually consists of a grass pitch, but for the NFL game, the grass got rolled out of the arena in exchange for artificial turf. It's supposedly similar to the turf at the Cowboys' AT&T Stadium.
In suffering his injury in the second half, Johnson said he got his ankle stuck in the artificial turf and then banged his knee. He waved off the injury cart and was able to return to the game shortly. After the game, he told reporters that the turf in London just wasn't up to par.
Bills DB Taron Johnson blasts London Stadium's artificial turf
Johnson said of the play he got injured, "That (bleeping) turf, to be honest with you. The turf was terrible here. They have to get rid of it – report that. If we can do grass, we should do grass."
Other Bills players also chimed in with their distaste of Tottenham Hotspur's turf field. One veteran called it "(bleeping) cement", and Stefon Diggs said, "It was all right" and declined to elaborate, possibly unwilling to accept a fine from the NFL.
Johnson's complaints about the playing surface echo what plenty of players and NFL members have said about the dangers of artificial turf ever since Jets' Aaron Rodgers tore his Achilles in Week 1. Natural grass is safer and more preventative when it comes to season-ending injuries; however, the league may not be willing to shell out the money to maintain well-watered grass fields.
In any case, the Bills can't complain too much. They were playing on the same field as the Jaguars, and they just didn't play as well as their opponents. The loss is on them, not the playing surface.
