Bills replacing grass at Highmark starting Monday

[Einstein]

2 hours ago, Buffalo716 said:

 

Every single grassfield in the Northeast went through this process when it got put down 

 

It's Not unusual this is what happens... Literally the two Northeast stadiums with grass field that have been built in the last 25 years went through that 

 

Literally people will complain about everything because at first it was we need to get rid of turf.. now they're going to complain that the grass is terrible forever 

 

That's how it goes.. the bills are literally using the best company in the world that makes grass football field

 

Literally the number one company in the world.. it wasn't botched this is what happens in environments like Buffalo 

 

It will improve as time goes on because it will be dialed in.. it was always going to take extreme maintenance and still will after this 

 

I could have told you 3 months ago that it was going to get re sodded before the season

 

So is this going to happen repeatedly?

[Doc Brown]

Josh ahead of the game warning Terry not to just go back to turf.

[Scott7975]

3 minutes ago, Einstein said:

 

So is this going to happen repeatedly?

 

It might, it might not. What do you expect them to do? New stuff doesn't work right all the time in every business. They'll keep at it until it's what works for them. Maybe some of you experts can go tell them how to do it. Here are the companies...

 

Tuckahoe Turf Farms (also called Tuckahoe Farms), based in Hammonton, New Jersey, grew the Kentucky bluegrass sod for the natural grass field at the new Highmark Stadium.

wivb.com

SCG Fields (an Ohio-based contractor) handled the installation of the roughly two acres of sod in October 2025.

wivb.com

Tuckahoe has a longstanding relationship with the Bills (including their practice fields) and supplies high-end sports turf to venues like Fenway Park, Acrisure Stadium (Steelers), and Lincoln Financial Field (Eagles). The field uses a high-tech system with heating, drainage/subair, and grow lights to handle Buffalo’s climate.

nytimes.com

 

People like you just want to find ***** to whine and complain about.

[NickelCity]

Grass gets worn. Does this really bother some people? Have we become so conditioned to looking at turf that seeing the original (better) surface for the game appears somehow less than?

 

Like others I assume that the longer the roots grow the better, but if they are willing to pay to re-sod during the seasons then it's no skin off my back. Let's move past turf and not look back....

 

 

[Doc Brown]

9 minutes ago, Scott7975 said:

Tuckahoe has a longstanding relationship with the Bills (including their practice fields) and supplies high-end sports turf to venues like Fenway Park, Acrisure Stadium (Steelers), and Lincoln Financial Field (Eagles). The field uses a high-tech system with heating, drainage/subair, and grow lights to handle Buffalo’s climate.

nytimes.com

 

People like you just want to find ***** to whine and complain about.

Steelers just had to replace their Kentucky Blue grass field with Bermuda grass because it was almost unplayable by the end of the season.  They stupidly have Pitt play their too so it's pry almost double the use.  Hoping they learned from Pittsburgh's mistakes when planning for this.

[QCity]

Well the TBD horticulturists in the other thread certainly had me convinced it would take up to 2 years for the roots to take hold. So much  for that I guess. 🤷‍♂️

[EmotionallyUnstable]

Ralph is cheap 

[DrDawkinstein]

2 hours ago, Sierra Foothills said:

 

He also took out (I think) Mike Danna on that play.

 

That's 340 lbs moving at a pretty high rate of speed.

 

 

Ah-ha! I was wondering who got taken out on that play. Thanks!

[eball]

3 hours ago, skibum said:

I’ve been studying and working with plants my whole life, and to me this seems like a very bad idea.

 

Are you a neurobotanist?

 

[Rousseauisnoschmo]

8 hours ago, Ridgewaycynic2013 said:

Chief groundskeeper in total agreement with the plans.

Can we smoke this grass since they're probably going to throw it out anyway?

[GolfandBills]

How hard is it to get a good grass surface this day and age with all the technology?  Pretty sad they have to replace it after two games 

[Brianmoorman4jesus]

We will have turf back by 2028

[Sierra Foothills]

3 hours ago, Buffalo716 said:

So what do you say that the only two grass NFL fields in Northern stadiums built since 1999 had to get completely re sodded within 3 weeks too

 

Those weren't called failed fields... It was called this happens 

 

People would think that this field would last for years but the history says the other two Fields built in the Northeast had it re sodded before preseason too

 

It's going to get re done fairly often...

 

What you're avoiding is the rhetoric after the Carolina game:

 

Pete Guelli: "It's Year 1. So it's a brand new field and it's going to take time for the foundation to build up. So some of the things people saw in the game, those will dissipate over time. Our grounds people were aware that was a possibility. Until it actually happens in a game as the field is maturing and the root system is setting, those things can happen," he said. "It was attended to quickly and the game was able to continue. And we were comfortable with the performance after that."

 

"Our grounds people were aware that was a possibility. Until it actually happens in a game as the field is maturing and the root system is setting, those things can happen," he said. "It was attended to quickly and the game was able to continue. And we were comfortable with the performance after that."

 

“It’s also about the organic matter under the roots,” Bills senior VP of venue operations Andy Major said. “Organic matter builds up over time, over years, and gives a little more stability than, say, a virgin field that has sand in those areas.”

 

The story we were given was that the field would mature and become more resilient. The story has changed.

 

The re-sodding is plan B.

 

Your apologies on behalf of the team are off the mark and tiresome.

 

3 hours ago, JohnnyCash said:

You make it sound like it was a given.  If so, where were you with this opinion a month ago? 😂

 

This was a big “oops”.  No other way to describe it. 

 

Agreed.

 

It's not a big deal to me that the field is having issues but apparently it's a major effin' deal that people have the gall to want to talk about it.

 

On a sub-issue, this is a Bills forum where people talk about everything including "which NFL coaches are overrated", "which team will break the new stadium's win streak", where the Bills rank in "watchability," "Fitzy has season tickets, etc. etc. etc.

 

For the millionth time, those who don't want to talk about a topic shouldn't post in the topic. It's really simple.

 

Edited August 30 by Sierra Foothills

[Buffalo716]

8 minutes ago, Sierra Foothills said:

 

What you're avoiding is the rhetoric after the Carolina game:

 

Pete Guelli: "It's Year 1. So it's a brand new field and it's going to take time for the foundation to build up. So some of the things people saw in the game, those will dissipate over time. Our grounds people were aware that was a possibility. Until it actually happens in a game as the field is maturing and the root system is setting, those things can happen," he said. "It was attended to quickly and the game was able to continue. And we were comfortable with the performance after that."

 

"Our grounds people were aware that was a possibility. Until it actually happens in a game as the field is maturing and the root system is setting, those things can happen," he said. "It was attended to quickly and the game was able to continue. And we were comfortable with the performance after that."

 

“It’s also about the organic matter under the roots,” Bills senior VP of venue operations Andy Major said. “Organic matter builds up over time, over years, and gives a little more stability than, say, a virgin field that has sand in those areas.”

 

The story we were given was that the field would mature and become more resilient. The story has changed.

 

The re-sodding is plan B.

 

Your apologies on behalf of the team are off the mark and tiresome.

 

 

Agreed.

 

It's not a big deal to me that the field is having issues but apparently it's a major effin' deal that people have the gall to want to talk about it.

 

On a sub-issue, this is a Bills forum where people talk about everything including "which NFL coaches are overrated", "which team will break the new stadium's win streak", where the Bills rank in "watchability," "Fitzy has season tickets, etc. etc. etc.

 

For the millionth time, those who don't want to talk about a topic shouldn't post in the topic. It's really simple.

 

Well to be fair I didn't apologize I said this has happened with the last two Northeast stadiums that put in grass 

 

All I said is it is something that has happened and grass is safer and better but it is tougher to manage

 

My point was the bills did not cut corners they spent a lot of money with a world class company that does this

 

I would think you would need a plan a b and c and you really wouldn't know until players have played tackle football on it.. it obviously didn't hold great but I'm pretty sure they said the new  sod is thicker more heavier cut ready to be played on 

 

That's all we could hope for my friend.. like I certainly don't want the field to be a disaster

 

If this sod is good it probably will be good for season or two... We are in Buffalo buddy... I wanted grass but they're going to have to figure out how to manage it

 

 

Edited August 30 by Buffalo716

[Sierra Foothills]

4 minutes ago, Buffalo716 said:

Well to be fair I didn't apologize I said this has happened with the last two Northeast stadiums that put in grass 

 

All I said is it is something that has happened and grass is safer and better but it is tougher to manage

 

My point was the bills did not cut corners they spent a lot of money with a world class company that does this

 

I would think you would need a plan a b and c and you really wouldn't know until players have played tackle football on it.. it obviously didn't hold great but I'm pretty sure they said the new  sod is thicker more heavier cut ready to be played on 

 

That's all we could hope for my friend.. like I certainly don't want the field to be a disaster

 

And no one accused the Bills of cutting corners and everyone knows that this is a state-of-the-art field.

 

The moral of the story is that the state-of-the-art has a long ways to go.

 

 

[Buffalo716]

Just now, Sierra Foothills said:

 

And no one accused the Bills of cutting corners and everyone knows that this is a state-of-the-art field.

 

The moral of the story is that the state-of-the-art has a long ways to go.

 

 

 

That's absolutely true and all we could hope for is that it is safe for our players and everyone on the field 

 

I agree 

 

[Richard Noggin]

2 hours ago, NickelCity said:

Grass gets worn. Does this really bother some people? Have we become so conditioned to looking at turf that seeing the original (better) surface for the game appears somehow less than?

 

Like others I assume that the longer the roots grow the better, but if they are willing to pay to re-sod during the seasons then it's no skin off my back. Let's move past turf and not look back....

 

 

 

Grass gets worn, no doubt, but that's not at all the issue here. The surface was still super green following the last preseason game. The grass itself was fine. No dirt showing through or mud forming.

 

It's mainly the frequency and magnitude of divots coming dislodged, which seems like more of an issue with the topsoil x root substructure. In the first preseason game, I also saw the surface, a couple of times, get bunched up in little swales or mounds where it didn't break free but did lift up (and needed to be stamped down again). I did not see that happening during the final preseason game, but the divots were still somewhat common. 

 

I would still argue that injury prevention (DJ Moore's awkward tackle/cleat plant on his last catch of first preseason game, for example) due to the surface's obvious "give," and general impact/wear reduction due to a softer, more floating/cushioned playing surface (backed up by Allen's recent comments) is worth any increased maintenance and costs associated with natural grass. 

[Buffalo Junction]

3 hours ago, NickelCity said:

Grass gets worn. Does this really bother some people? Have we become so conditioned to looking at turf that seeing the original (better) surface for the game appears somehow less than?

 

Like others I assume that the longer the roots grow the better, but if they are willing to pay to re-sod during the seasons then it's no skin off my back. Let's move past turf and not look back....

 

 

Yeah. It does apparently. 🤷‍♂️. I suppose that’s because we’ve all gotten used to watching those GB playoff games where the grass looks perfect, but most aren’t aware that the sod at Lambeau Field is actually a hybrid that uses synthetic fibers to stitch the roots to the sand/soil underneath to prevent the tearing up.  

[Freddie's Dead]

11 hours ago, Ridgewaycynic2013 said:

Chief groundskeeper in total agreement with the plans.

 

It's a hybrid of Kentucky Bluegrass and California Sinsemilla....

[Malazan]

12 hours ago, Ed_Formerly_of_Roch said:

 

That's what the article stated, seems counter intuitive to what I find in my backyard with replacing grass, the longer it's down the better.

Are you and ~50 of your friends wearing cleats and performing exhaustive physical exertion on it?