Bills President Defends Highmark Stadium Grass After NFL Player Says the 'Field is Ass'

After complaints from players about the field condition at New Highmark Stadium, Buffalo Bills president Pete Guelli defended the grass.

Guelli inspected the grass with the groundskeeping crew and said it is safe.

"From a playability and safety perspective, everybody's very happy," Guelli said, per the Associated Press' John Wawrow. "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."

It comes after one anonymous player told The Athletic's Tim Graham that "the field is ass right now."

One of the main concerns from players and fans was the grass being churned up during the game, so much so that at one point, officials had to stop play to replace a divot.

The trade-off with grass compared to turf is its unpredictability, and Guelli said the groundskeeping crew knew it was possible that the field would take a beating early on.

"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."

The field, which is Kentucky bluegrass grown at Tuckahoe Turf Farms in New Jersey, was installed last October and has heating coils underneath the stadium to keep it from freezing in colder weather. It was a multi-million-dollar operation, but that doesn't alleviate issues like those that arose over the weekend.

There have been other concerns about the new stadium, including seats with obstructed views, but the Bills have also addressed those issues.

The good news is the team still has time to get the field and the stadium a bit more game-ready before hosting a regular-season game. Buffalo will be back on the grass this week for an open practice and will host the Pittsburgh Steelers on Aug. 27. The Bills' home opener is Sept. 17 against the Detroit Lions.