Packers, Raiders play on 80-yard field in Winnipeg due to turf issues
The Green Bay Packers and Oakland Raiders played their exhibition game Thursday on an 80-yard field amid concerns over turf conditions in Winnipeg, Manitoba.
Team and league officials were concerned about the condition of the turf at Investors Group Field - home to the CFL's Winnipeg Blue Bombers - after a goal-post relocation in one of the end zones. CFL goal posts are positioned at the front of the end zone, while NFL goal posts are placed at the back.
NFL, #Packers and game officials check out the “hole” in the end zone before #Raiders game. pic.twitter.com/N8JBhBAYx2
— Paul Gutierrez (@PGutierrezESPN) August 22, 2019
Referees and officials from both teams then elected to shorten the field. The area from the 10-yard line to the goal line served as end zones on both sides of the stadium. The reconfigured end zones kept the affected turf out of bounds on the one side of the field.
The Packers and Raiders also skipped kickoffs as a result of the shortened field, instead taking possession on the 15-yard line.
In a statement obtained by Josh Moser of FOX 11, the NFL said the turf "met the mandatory practices for the maintenance of surfaces for NFL games" when inspected a day before the contest.
The uncertainties over the field contributed to the Packers' decision to sit quarterback Aaron Rodgers and 32 others, according to Mike Garafolo of NFL Network.