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Smokin' the grass
Written by Nate Dunlevy   
Saturday, 30 January 2010 07:16

(note: I've rerun the numbers in light of a mistake)

The Colts and Saints are both classic 'turf' teams, which brings to mind Tug McGraw's famous line.  When asked whether he preferred grass or astroturf, he replied, "I don't know. I've never smoked astroturf."

Because the Super Bowl will be played on grass, it makes sense to see how the two teams fared on grass fields.

This year, Indy played six five games on grass:  Miami, Arizona, Tennessee, Baltimore, Houston, and Jacksonville.

New Orleans played four meaningful games on grass:  Miami, Philadelphia, Tampa, and Washington.  They also played Carolina, but Drew Brees did not play that game, so I'm not counting it.

Here are the results (excluding all meaningless games for either team), the difference column is calibrated so that plus means the team was better on grass, minus means they were worse:

PF PA Rush Rush A Pass Pass A TO TO Forced
Colts (grass) 31.8 20
84 122.8 303.8 219.6 1.5 2.0
Colts (turf) 26.1 16.4 87.2 106.7 293.6 228.8 1.4 1.8
Difference +5.7 -3.6 -3.2 -16.1 +10.2 +7.2 -0.1 +0.2
Saints (grass) 41.8 21.5 127.3 105.8 289.8 237 1.5 3.8
Saints (turf) 30.5 20.5 135.1 123.1 281.3 238.8 1.7 2.2
Difference +10.3 -1.0 -7.8 +17.3 +8.5 +1.8 +0.2 +1.6

Observations:

  • As you can see, the Saints are better on grass in almost every category.  Though it is important to note, their grass games were against Chad Henne, Kevin Kolb, Josh Freeman, and Jason Campbell. 
  • The Colts rushed better on turf, but passed better on grass, scoring more on grass overall.  The Colts D also played better against the pass on grass
  • Again, you see the Saints thrive on forcing turnovers.  They forced nearly 4 a game on grass, though note the quarterbacks involved.

Conclusion:

I'm not sure you can make much of a comparison between these teams, because the worst team the Colts played on grass finished 7-9, and three were above .500.  The Indy O regresses in terms of rushing yards, but not points on grass, but the Indy D is virtually the same on both, allowing identical yardage, but about a field goal a game more.  The Saints played four horrid QBs on grass, so their stats are obviously improved. Of the 8 categories, the Colts were better in 3, the Saints in 4, and the teams tied in one.

The bottom line is that unless the field is wet or poorly tended, I don't think the grass/turf factor will hurt either team.

Comments (13)Add Comment
Balt = turf
written by JAT, January 30, 2010
Not to nitpick, but Baltimore plays on turf. You should exclude that game.
...
written by DZ, January 30, 2010
Great catch. Wow. Why do they play on turf? I'll fix it.
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written by shake n bake, January 30, 2010
Does it mean that I'm following too much draft stuff that I thought this was about Marty Gilyard for some reason?
Interesting
written by coltsfanawalt, January 30, 2010
These last several articles have been great. I was noticing the opponents we faced on grass. Three of them were divisional opponents that always play us tough. In contrast, the Saints had one divisional opponent in a meaningful game on grass, the Bucs. I would say that was a matchup against a poor team, but the results contradict me.

In our othr to "grass games", our offense was just fine against Miami and Arizona. Our defense suffered at Miami, but it was fine at Arizona. I liken the Saints to the Cards more than the Dolphins.

How did the Saints fare against the Dolphins and Eagles specifically? That might be a good consideration. Good stuff as always.
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written by DZ, January 30, 2010
The Eagles game was a blowout because McNabb was hurt. Kevin Kolb, the backup, was atrocious. It makes it very hard to judge.

The Saints had a wild game against the Dolphins. They gave up a ton of points and trailed big, but then the Dolphins started to turn the ball over and the Saints rallied. It wasn't exactly their finest game.
Stadium Turf
written by T-Machine, January 30, 2010
Not sure what the weather has been like, but the Pro Bowl tomorrow could tear the turf up in advance of the game. They are not putting in new sod between the games. Hopefully, though, it will stay dry and the field will hold up.
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written by Preston, January 30, 2010
The NFL really screwed up very very badly on this one, first trying to make injured players that are going to play in the SB go down to the pro bowl instead of getting treatment for their injuries, now it looks like they are going to screw the f**king field up because of an exhibition game. WOW just WOW i'm really pissed.
Shake:
written by Cass, January 31, 2010
Yeah, I think so. We've still got a week left before draft stuff this year. Another one of the benefits of being in the Super Bowl.

By the way, DZ, I've got a hypothetical for you. Say that the Colts put up a good fight against the Saints but lose in the final minute (let's say it's because Powers was out). Would this season be considered a success in your eyes? I know for me, I would still be proud of this team and recognize it's a young team that will be intact next year.
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written by DZ, January 31, 2010
Making the Super Bowl makes this a successful season. Losing it would be disappointing, but it doesn't make the season a failure.
Don't worry about such things.
written by huevonkiller, January 31, 2010
Things work out if they are meant to be. I believe in Indy and what they can accomplish. Few have wanted us to succeed this year, but this team fights for everything.
couldn't agree more
written by buzz, January 31, 2010
I think the grass/turf splits are often over stated. I don't think it will be a big factor in the least. Great analysis to show why.
Saints Fans
written by Solute, January 31, 2010
I had alot of respect for Saints fans after last weekends win.

But now they are getting just as bad as Jets fans in how cocky they really are.

And their chant "Who dey/dat" has to be the stupidest thing I have ever heard.

I was going to be OK with the Saints winning, but now I want them to get their teeth kicked in just like the Jets to shut them up.
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written by bubbadeez, January 31, 2010
I just read that a source has said that Freeney has a torn ligament in his ankle.

Oh man I hope not.

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