Super Bowl LVII has come and gone, but discussions about the poor field quality continue to persist. It was a hot topic in the aftermath of the game and remains so, and that likely comes as no surprise to New England Patriots head coach Bill Belichick.
Although his team didn’t play in the big game this year, Belichick has played in a Super Bowl in Arizona before. Leading up to Super Bowl XLIX at State Farm Stadium, retired wide receiver Danny Amendola says Belichick prepared the team for less-than-stellar field conditions. Amendola made his comments during an appearance on “Green Light with Chris Long.”
“When you play a night game in Arizona, for some reason the grass always gets a little dewy at night, and it’s so slick,” he said, via Boston.com. “I’ve worn seven studs on that field numerous times.
“One Super Bowl we played in, Bill made it a mandatory seven-stud game. We were all b—–g and moaning, but we didn’t have too many slips.”
The heavier cleats weren’t a favorite among the players but it prevented them from experiencing the issues Kansas City and Philadelphia dealt with this year. And Amendola has no pity for those players, adding that their coaches should have been more thorough in their preparations.
“On that surface, you’ve got to switch the tires out and put the seven-studs in,” Amendola said. “I feel like you get a lot better traction. You don’t feel like you can play as fast in them, but at the same time, you’re chopping it up, you’re gripping the turf. . . . Anybody that slipped, look at the cleats they were wearing. They were probably wearing the wrong tires.”
There’s a reason why Belichick is considered one of the greatest head coaches of all time. Every single detail matters, and there rarely is something he’s unprepared for.
