Soldier Field Turf a Mess Ahead of Bears vs. Vikings Primetime Clash

The playing surface at Soldier Field looks completely botched ahead of the Chicago Bears primetime matchup against the Minnesota Vikings.

Check out these big ole rectangles of patched up grass.

This video is hilarious. Check out the guy mashing the ground with some big metal stick. Good job dude, that’s really helping out a bunch, those other massive patches you’ve probably already beaten into the ground look just as bad.

Soldier Field has been the home of the Bears since 1971. The stadium was originally built in 1924 and reconstructed in 2003, but you can visibly tell from this viral cellphone footage that the actual football playing surface is in horrible condition and a game hasn’t even been played there yet.

You’d hate to see what this field looks like after a full season.

Soldier Field has notoriously been a bad stadium for players. It’s become a part of Chicago football and NFC North lore that the entire building is just a gravesite for injuries.

The last time there was skepticism about the playing conditions was last September. Offensive tackle Braxton Jones proceeded to suffer an ankle injury. Bears kicker Cairo Santos expressed concerns about the turf's condition, describing it as both slippery and sticky.

But here’s where the story takes an even funnier twist. Soldier Field hosted an “unprecedented” five consecutive nights of sold out concerts from August 29th through September 2nd – literally less than one week ago.

Performances by Oasis, My Chemical Romance, The Lumineers and System of a Down/Avenged Sevenfold all performed during the star-studded weekend. The event was said to require extensive preparation of the field and led to the installation of new sod on the field to manage the heavy fan traffic and the natural grass.

Uh, if that’s what the newly installed sod on the field looks like, then somebody should be asking for their money back.

Hopefully the playing surface at Soldier Field doesn’t interfere with Monday night’s matchup. Caleb Williams and the Chicago Bears should be a little bit more fun this year. J.J. McCarthy’s first real NFL action comes on the road in primetime. It should be a really fun game.

But the NFL should look into the playing surface of these fields. There are a few notorious stadiums around the league that have become notorious for causing injuries. If player safety is really what we’re ultimately after, protection over fields and adequate playing surfaces should be required.