Players from the Pittsburgh Steelers and Cleveland Browns blasted the field conditions at Acrisure Stadium in a formal complaint to the NFL Players Association
17:50 ET, 15 Oct 2025
Aaron Rodgers said the conditions at Acrisure Stadium were 'unplayable'
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Aaron Rodgers said the conditions at Acrisure Stadium were 'unplayable'(Image: Getty Images)
Players from the Pittsburgh Steelers and Cleveland Browns swiftly voiced their concerns to the NFL Players Association regarding the “embarrassing” field conditions at Acrisure Stadium.
Following the Steelers’ 23-9 win over the Browns — during which rookie quarterback Dillon Gabriel struggled to find much of any success through the air — veteran signal-caller Aaron Rodgers ruthlessly described Pittsburgh’s home playing surface as “borderline unplayable.”
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On more than one occasion during Sunday’s contest, players could be seen kicking up dirt and chunks of grass while attempting to make explosive movements downfield.
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With less than four minutes remaining in the fourth quarter, Steelers kicker Chris Boswell lost his footing on the grass while attempting a 54-yard field goal. Special teams captain Miles Killebrew, meanwhile, suffered a "significant" noncontact knee injury when he tried to plant his leg.
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"It got real beat up," Rodgers said of the field while speaking to reporters at a postgame press conference. "By the time the third quarter rolled around, that thing was really beat up. So I feel bad about what happened to Miles. I'm not sure if there was any carry there.
"Thankfully, [Chris Boswell] took care of those kicks before the field got borderline unplayable."
It appears as though Rodgers was not the only player who was displeased with the playing conditions. According to a union source, multiple members of the Steelers and Browns reached out to the NFL Players Association and expressed their “outrage” about Acrisure Stadium’s field.
"The NFLPA has conveyed its concern to the NFL and will work to ensure that players are not put in that position going forward," the insider told ESPN’s Brooke Pryor on Wednesday.
The NFL has seemingly heard players’ complaints, as spokesperson Brian McCarthy shared that the league has "been in touch with both the union and the club, which has taken steps to replace the grass surface."
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In recent months, fans, players and pundits alike have weighed in on the raging debate surrounding the use of turf or grass in NFL stadiums.
Steelers defensive lineman Cameron Heyward, for one, prefers grass playing surfaces so long as they are well kept. "Honestly, it was s---," he said on Tuesday. "I lost one of my teammates and kind of makes me sad about it.
"I like grass, but that wasn't grass for playing," Heyward said.
One NFLPA source expressed a similar sentiment, stating: "Players prefer grass fields, but all grass surfaces aren't equal.
“The conditions at Acrisure Stadium underscore why players have pushed for high-quality grass fields, and why the NFLPA continues to push for improved, shared maintenance practices of grass fields across the league."
Some of the blame for Acrisure Stadium’s poor field conditions can be attributed to the fact that the University of Pittsburgh also calls the stadium home. Yet in the week leading up to Sunday’s contest, neither the Steelers nor Panthers had played a game there.
Regardless, Pitt still hosted four of its first five games of the 2025 campaign at the venue, whereas the Steelers played just one home game prior to their Week 6 matchup against the Browns.
Looking ahead, Steelers head coach Mike Tomlin asserted that he’s “not concerned” about the field conditions. "I thought it was poor [Sunday]," he said.
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"I'm not concerned going forward. It's my understanding that that turf is going to be swapped out, but I certainly acknowledge it was a concern yesterday."