For all their success in Orchard Park, the Buffalo Bills’ own players have delivered a damning verdict on the very field they play on. For the first time, the NFLPA’s survey introduced a standalone category for home-field conditions. When it came to Orchard Park, Josh Allen and his teammates just put the scrutiny on Buffalo’s home field.

While the NFLPA was reportedly barred from publicly releasing the report cards this year after the survey, a version of it was leaked recently, and the Bills’ players handed their home field an F grade.

More than 1,700 players across the NFL participated in the NFLPA’s 2026 survey and graded everything from their coaching staffs to locker rooms. That F grade placed them alongside the Carolina Panthers and Seattle Seahawks. So, players essentially labeled Buffalo’s home environment as one of the worst in the NFL. 

While this was the first year the survey evaluated home fields as a separate category, there’s no previous grade for comparison of Buffalo’s home field situation. Still, the F grade suggests deeper concerns, with other franchises like the Ravens receiving the A grade as per the leak.

The Bills have played on artificial turf at Highmark Stadium since it opened in 1973, and that surface, while durable, hasn’t exactly been player-friendly. But the Bills are betting big time on their new $2.2 billion stadium to flip this narrative.

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The new Highmark Stadium will feature a natural grass surface equipped with underground heating technology to maintain the field at approximately 60 degrees during brutal winters in Buffalo. 

Grow lights will further assist in maintaining the grass at the Bills’ outdoor facility. And the Bills’ general manager, Brandon Beane, has already made it clear that the decision to switch from turf to grass centers around his team’s player-centric philosophy.

​​“We’re in 2025. You’ve seen places like Green Bay, Pittsburgh, Kansas City, and Chicago using technology; that helped us put together a plan to be able to handle the weather here. We feel we have the right grass people and field turf people to help us manage this. And our players are going to benefit from playing on grass,” Beane said in an interview with USA TODAY Sports last month.

There are already 15 NFL stadiums that use grass or hybrid surfaces, including several in cold-weather cities. Yes, grass costs more over time compared to turf, but according to Beane, player safety is worth the investment for his team.

Data has further shown that while turf is easier to maintain at stadiums, it may contribute to more non-contact lower-knee injuries for NFL players. Bills All-Pro left tackle Dion Dawkins has experienced it firsthand while playing at Highmark Stadium.

“Super, super achy, bro. You can drastically tell the difference,” Dawkins said in an interview with USA TODAY Sports last month while talking about turf and grass surfaces.

The new grass field won’t eliminate injuries entirely for the Bills players, of course, as it still possesses the risk of contact injuries. But studies suggest that it may reduce non-contact issues for the Bills.

That’s why NFLPA president JC Tretter continues pushing for league-wide conversion to natural grass. While all the NFL stadiums haven’t followed suit, the Bills have answered the league’s call for the change ahead of the 2026 season, when their new stadium is set to open its doors.

Moreover, outside of the home-field issue, the Bills remain a well-respected organization internally. The Bills were ranked 23rd overall in the 2025 NFLPA survey while their ownership earned an A-minus, and the coaching staff secured an A grade overall in 2026. Even their recently dismissed head coach, Sean McDermott, received a strong final evaluation from Josh Allen and co.

Sean McDermott receives his final rating from the Bills locker room

Last year, when the NFLPA released its report cards, Sean McDermott earned a B grade and ranked 27th among 32 NFL head coaches. This year, though, McDermott’s grade improved significantly for his final rating as he left the Bills building.

Despite the Bills’ firing him after their 33-30 overtime Divisional Round loss to the Denver Broncos, McDermott received an A- in the 2026 survey. That’s a notable jump in McDermott’s rating and perhaps a sign that Josh Allen and his teammates still respected the coach’s leadership.

During his nine seasons in Buffalo, Sean McDermott compiled a 98-50 regular-season record. He transformed the Bills from a struggling franchise into a perennial AFC East contender, winning five straight division titles. 

But with Josh Allen in his prime, expectations had grown higher. Zero Super Bowl appearances and an 8-8 playoff record ultimately sealed Sean McDermott’s fate in Buffalo. Bills owner Terry Pegula explained that change was inevitable for his team following the loss against the Broncos.

“My decision to bring in a new coach was based on the results of our game in Denver,” Terry Pegula said in a presser last month. “I walked over to Josh, but he didn’t even acknowledge I was there. The first thing I said to him was that it was a catch. We all know what I’m talking about. He didn’t acknowledge me. He just sat there sobbing, and he had given everything he had to try to win that game. I saw the pain in Josh’s face at his presser. And I felt his pain. I know we can do better, and I know we will get better.”

Pegula didn’t just see a loss, he saw the emotional toll it took on his franchise quarterback, Josh Allen, who is yet to reach a Super Bowl despite delivering an MVP performance in 2024.

So, now Joe Brady, who earned an A- as the Bills’ offensive coordinator last season, steps into the head coaching role in Buffalo with the expectations of pushing his team past the playoff ceiling that defined the Sean McDermott era.