Since the start of this season, the NFL's debate about turf vs. natural grass playing surfaces escalated. It all started when New York Jets quarterback Aaron Rodgers tore his Achilles tendon four plays into his first official game with his new team.
The talk continued when more injuries were picked up early on this season. Yet, the NFL stood its ground, saying that artificial turf is not going anywhere.
In Week 5, Kansas City Chiefs tight end Travis Kelce sprained his ankle on a non-contact play, causing him to walk gingerly to the locker room in the first half. Kelce is rumored to be dating 12-time Grammy Award-winning singer Taylor Swift. What if the singer's fanbase, better known as "Swifties," were to lead the NFL to move on from artificial turf forever?
Well, one Twitter account impersonated a "Swiftie" and called on the NFL to move to natural grass playing surfaces.
A 'Swiftie' calls on NFL to ban artificial turf after Travis Kelce injury
This tweet went viral quick, with some in the NFL world, whether media figures or fans, responding to it, imagining if this would be the way for the league to move on from turf. Some of them figured out that the tweet was a parody and responded in kind. Others didn't interact with the tweet but pondered about teaming up with swifties to get the NFL to move to natural grass.
US Bank Stadium uses a slit film turf, which ESPN's Kevin Seifert says "has had a higher rate of non-contact lower extremity injuries than other types of turf." Per Seifert, this playing surface is scheduled to be removed by the Vikings after this season.
As for Kelce, the injury did look concerning at the time. But after halftime ended, Kelce jogged back to the sidelines, and wore his helmet, waiting to re-enter the game. While being listed as questionable to return, Kelce did take the field once again.
Of course, even with an ankle injury, Kelce still found a way to get open and find the end zone for the touchdown. In the third quarter, Kelce had an opening before the end zone, caught a pass from quarterback Patrick Mahomes and extended the Chiefs' lead to 27-13.
Luckily for Kelce, he suffered a low ankle sprain, so it's not a serious injury. That is good news to hear. But, this moment has led to fans and others in the NFL world calling for an end to turf playing surfaces.