In the pilot episode of Seinfeld, Jerry explains to George that, when it comes to laundry, you can’t over dry and you can’t over wet. Football fields (spoiler alert) are not laundry.
George Toma recently explained to Josh Weinfuss of ESPN.com that the Super Bowl LVII playing surface was slick and slippery because NFL field director Ed Magnan overwatered the grass, and that he rolled the portable turf into the stadium before it was dry.
“So what he does,” Toma said of Magnan, “he waters the hell out of it and puts it right into the stadium and that’s it. Never sees sunlight again. He can’t do that.”
Toma also pointed to the tarp that was on the field for too long, giving it (per Toma) a “rotten smell.” Toma likewise complained that Magnan didn’t put enough sand on the field.
“He sanded it two weeks too late,” Toma said. “He had only one sanding. He should have had two or three sandings, but he didn’t do shit. And that was it. And not only that, he didn’t take care of it. He wouldn’t listen to anybody.”
The NFL circled the wagons, as it always does, when questions emerged about the quality of the field.
For the 94-year-old Toma, his time working with the NFL is over.
“I can’t take it anymore,” Toma said. “Me and the league are finished. They can’t tell me what to do anymore. We’re done.”
Through it all, the Eagles haven’t complained. We recently tried to get G.M. Howie Roseman to sound off about it, given that it took steam out of the team’s pass rush. He continues to say the field was the same for both teams.