Kittle bemoans fake turf on Moseley's injury
CHARLOTTE, N.C. >> Emmanuel Moseley exited the 49ers' locker room on crutches with a likely season-ending knee injury, and it conjured up not just sad feelings among teammates but angry memories, too.
That's because the 49ers, even after a high-scoring road win, are heading to The Greenbrier Resort in West Virginia for a third straight year with at least one player likely having torn an anterior cruciate knee ligament on an artificial-grass surface.
Two years ago, defensive linemen Nick Bosa and Solomon Thomas sustained season-ending ACL tears in a rout at the New York Jets' MetLife Field, where new, spongy turf was pointed at as a factor in their and others' injuries. Last season, cornerback Jason Verrett tore his ACL in a seasonopening win on Detroit's artificial surface.
Tight end George Kittle vocally campaigned against fake turf in the past, and he did so again after Sunday's 37-15 win at Carolina, where grass field was switched out before the 2021 season.
“The thing that just confuses me, if you're not going to mandate grass, then why aren't all turf fields the exact same, so guys get used to playing on the same turf everywhere,” Kittle said. “Every field has a different turf. NBA guys don't play on different wood. What are we doing? Hockey players don't play on different ice all the time.
“I just wish we were playing on a surface that was similar week in and week out, so your body wouldn't be dealing with crappy turf.”
The NFC West-leading 49ers (3-2) play their next game on FieldTurf at Atlanta's Mercedes-Benz Stadium. The 49ers were less than five minutes Sunday from avoiding a fake-turf storyline, but then Moseley went down covering a deep pass, and it further took the glee out of an injury-marred game.
Here are a couple other things that caught my eye (and ear) from the 49ers' second straight win: BOSA'S INJURY >> As the 49ers defense surrendered its lone touchdown on the opening drive after halftime, Fred Warner wasn't yet aware that Nick Bosa would be ruled out from the second half because of a groin injury. Coach Kyle Shanahan said the 49ers noticed Bosa laboring in the second half from tightness in his groin and would be ruled out from returning.
Bosa is well aware of that type of injury, and he's expected to undergo an MRI today, just as he did two years ago with his ACL tear from the Jets' game/turf. He underwent core-muscle surgery to cut short his 2018 season at Ohio State, then rebounded as the NFL Defensive Rookie of the Year for the 2019 49ers. A week ago, his older brother, Joey, sustained a groin injury requiring surgery.
Bosa entered as the NFL's sack leader and did not add to his team-high total of six. But, in a silver lining, the 49ers wracked up six sacks against the Panthers, as recorded by Talanoa Hufanga (his career first), Fred Warner, Drake Jackson, Charles Omenihu, Demetrius Flannigan-Fowles and one split by Tashaun Gipson and Oren Burks. Jackson, a rookie, could fill in for Bosa.
MOSELEY'S IMPACT >> Moseley, a Greensboro, N.C. native, was enjoying a storybook homecoming, complete with his first career touchdown on a first-half pick-six, before getting hurt in essentially garbage time.
“It's tragic it happened at the end of the game. I pray he's doing good and not out too long,” said fellow starting cornerback Charvarius Ward, who had four pass breakups.
Added safety Talanoa Hufanga: “E-Man is such a special human being to me. He's been a leader to me as I came in as a rookie. He always had that juice to him, energy and infectious smile and that just flows throughout the locker room. To see E-Man go down, it almost felt like Trey Lance, too. Those are both of my guys.” Three weeks ago, Lance sustained a season-ending ankle fracture.
Although veteran starter Jason Verrett began practicing last week, Atlanta's FieldTurf might not be the best place to rush Verrett back for his first game since the 2021 opener. “We'd love to have that option, but we won't change it based off of what happened to E-Man,” said Shanahan, acknowledging that Sam Womack III and Ambry Thomas are more ready to start.