Injured NFL Rookie Not Happy With Playing Field Overseas
LONDON, ENGLAND - OCTOBER 02: General view inside the stadium prior to the NFL match between Minnesota Vikings and New Orleans Saints at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium on October 02, 2022 in London, England. (Photo by Justin Setterfield/Getty Images)
Minnesota Vikings safety Lewis Cine suffered a gruesome leg injury while playing at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium on Oct. 2.
Cine's rookie season ended when he fractured his lower leg in Minnesota's Week 4 win over the New Orleans Saints. He recently reflected on the playing conditions in London.
Per Chris Tomasson of the St. Paul Pioneer Press, Cine wouldn't say that the field's artificial turf caused his injury. However, he called the surface "sketchy."
"I think the odds of something happening on natural grass probably would have been lower," Cine said. "There were bumps [on the field]. When you were running on it, it felt like concrete."
This year's No. 32 pick said he'll "for sure" return next season.
"Nothing is going to keep me from playing next season, so I'll do what I got to do in rehab and come back," Cine said.
Earlier this month, the NFLPA urged the league to replace all slit-film turf fields. They also called for more safety testing and cited Tottenham's field when asserting that games shouldn't be played on surfaces "with clear visual abnormalities."
"Too often we see fields with clear issues that pose an increased risk to the players," NFLPA President JC Tretter wrote in an open letter. "Most recently, we saw the field in Tottenham that had a giant uneven seam right above the numbers. We should not be playing on anything but the best-quality playing surfaces."
Cine's Vikings are one of seven teams whose home stadium uses slit film.
