A year ago the Detroit Lions came back from their trip to London talking about how poor the turf was at Wembley Stadium. That, however, doesn't mean that they're complaining this year as they prepare for another game across the pond, this time against the Kansas City Chiefs.
Calvin Johnson says no turf is as bad as Soldier Field
Detroit’s star wide receiver thinks he’s ready for Wembley Stadium after playing on Chicago’s field.
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In fact, according to wide receiver Calvin Johnson, running around on Wembley Stadium's shoddy blend of synthetic and natural grass is nothing -- that is, if you've played in Chicago's Soldier Field before.
“Not really worried about it,” Johnson said, via the Detroit Free Press. “I’ve probably played on worse fields. Played on the Chicagos of the world. They’re not really great, so not really worried about the field.”
Johnson missed last year’s game in London due to a high ankle sprain, so he might be in for a surprise, especially considering the fact that Sunday’s contest between the Chiefs and Lions will be the third game at Wembley this year. By halftime of last season’s Lions-Falcons game -- which Detroit won 22-21 -- the turf around midfield had been completely torn up.
But Johnson is also a big soccer fan, and said he was looking forward to playing on a field that regularly houses some of the biggest soccer matches in the world, even if it is a different surface than he’s used to.
“The field was a little different,” Johnson said. “I don’t know if all fields are like that, all the pitches are like that here, but definitely, to be in a stadium that you’re used to seeing soccer played in, that was kind of cool.”
Sunday’s game between the 2-5 Chiefs and 1-6 Lions will kick off at 9:30 a.m. ET.
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