In the yearly survey run by the NFL Players Association, the Seattle Seahawks received an eyebrow-raising F grade for their home playing surface, the artificial turf at Lumen Field. That’s a grade that stars Leonard Williams and Cooper Kupp want to see changed.
Both were asked about the possibility of seeing natural grass return to Lumen Field after it was used for the 2026 FIFA World Cup, and advocated for the shift on Tuesday. Kupp was the more vocal of the duo, adding that playing on grass makes
his body feel significantly better than playing on turf.
“It makes a huge difference,” Kupp said. “I know all the metrics and all the data that say the injury rates of this, but I don’t know. I know how I feel. You ask a lot of players who will say the same thing. Whether injury rates change or not, I know how my body feels, everything on turf versus grass. You can ask coaches how their backs feel after standing on the turf versus grass. Coaches have a lot of other issues. But it does make a difference.”
Williams echoed a similar sentiment and said he feels that grass lessens the impact on his body when going to the ground.
“I understand there’s a lot of things that go into having grass in the stadium that I don’t fully understand yet, but if it was up to a player and it just came down to grass or turf, we obviously prefer grass,” Williams said.
The Seahawks players join a growing list of NFL stars who have continued their push for grass fields across the league after several NFL stadiums, including Lumen Field, installed grass fields for the World Cup this summer. Players from across the league, including San Francisco 49ers tight end George Kittle and Chicago Bears quarterback Caleb Williams, have begun a push backed by the NFLPA to institute grass playing surfaces league-wide.
However, this advocacy is not new for Kupp or the Seahawks.
Back in 2022, Kupp was asked about the same item during his time with the Los Angeles Rams, who play on turf at SoFi Stadium.
“We should be on grass,” Kupp said at the time. “That’s all I’m gonna say.”
In that same season, former Seahawks safety Quandre Diggs pushed back on turf fields following several non-contact injuries taking place at SoFi. Then Seahawks head coach Pete Carroll helped the push by backing Diggs, saying he’d like to see the debate reevaluated in the offseason, which never happened publicly.
Though with the Seahawks in the midst of being sold to a new owner, who clearly has some deep pockets, now could be the perfect time for Seattle’s core players to rally behind the cause and see change, at least in their own stadium.
