Players name MetLife Stadium worst place to play

MetLife Stadium, home to the New York Giants and New York Jets, is the worst place to play in the NFL. That according to a player survey conducted by The Athletic.

There were 79 respondents to the survey, and 18.4% listed MetLife as the worst stadium in the league. FedEx Field, home to the Washington Commanders, got 13.9% of the vote. Highmark Stadium, home to the Buffalo Bills, received 12.7% of the vote.

Comments from players posted by The Athletic were:

“Turf sucks and the whole place is lame.”

“Fans are horrible. Everything about that place is horrible.”

Ouch!

It seems like no one likes MetLife.

The turf has long been a source of complaint, though with a new and more advanced playing surface installed this season that may no longer be valid. Players would prefer grass, obviously, but the current FieldTurf Core system is the first multi-layer dual-polymer fiber turf field. Players have said it is softer than the turf previously used at MetLife.

The drab, gray look of the stadium — featuring slats on the outside that make it look like a big air-conditioning vent — has also been criticized. It is, of course, a compromise design between two franchises that cannot favor one or the other.

As for complaints about the fans, well, handling that is not my department.

Other survey nuggets

• Patrick Mahomes was named the game’s best player by 46.4% of 84 voters.
• Giants’ defensive tackle Dexter Lawrence got 2.9% of the vote for league’s best trash-talker. C’mon Dex, gotta up your game.
• The most annoying fan base? The Eagles led the way with 25.3% of the vote. The Cowboys were second at 24.7%. I’m sure Giants fans have no problem with that result.