It’s pretty ridiculous that in 2019 we still have NFL teams playing on dirt infields thanks to a shared stadium with a baseball team, but that’s the case with the Oakland Raiders — for now.
The Raiders share Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum with the A’s. That means the dirt infield overlaps with the football field during baseball season.
Football on a baseball diamond appreciation thread pic.twitter.com/16K9JPCYvv
— Mike Tunison (@xmasape) September 10, 2019
Some viewers may not think much of it — football players are big, tough, and take hard hits. What’s a dirt infield to them?
Well, Justin Forsett, who played nine seasons in the NFL as a running back, shared on Twitter just how brutal that dirt is.
If anyone wants to know what it feels like to fall on that dirt in Oakland Coliseum: Go outside right now, sprint as fast as you can in the middle of the street, once you get to full speed jump up as high as you can and belly flop on the pavement. #Facts
— Justin Forsett (@JForsett) September 10, 2019
That does not sound like fun.
The poor conditions at the Coliseum are part of the reason why the Raiders are moving to Las Vegas. There they will have their own stadium and won’t have to worry about dirt infields. The Coliseum has plumbing issues, leaks, and one MLB pitcher has called the stadium “disgusting.”
It sounds like NFL players won’t miss the dirt infield.
