The NFL's decade-long efforts to build new football-only stadiums has created a Garden of Eden for players and management alike. Locker rooms are plush and expansive. Owners love the revenue from club seats and luxury boxes.

But the real field of dreams is the sight of green grass. The NFL Players Association dreamed of a day when all outdoor stadiums had grass. And with the Giants and Jets experimenting with trays of grass at the Meadowlands, it was hoped that one day the six domed stadiums could change to grass fields, which are supposed to be easier on the legs and bodies of player.

	This scene from Ericsson Stadium last season shows what can happen to a grass field.

However, a scary tend is developing. Of late, it appears that the grass fields are more unsafe or receiving more negative publicity than the newer styles of artificial turf. Before re-sodding early in the season, the grass field at Paul Brown Stadium in Cincinnati was almost unplayable. And Heinz Field in Pittsburgh is the latest grass field under heavy criticism.

Players slipped and tripped continually in Pittsburgh last Sunday when the Steelers played host to the Falcons. Chunks of grass kept coming loose. The bad news is that things will get worse before they get better this year. Despite being re-sodded, Heinz Field was overused last week. There was a high-school game and a Pittsburgh Panthers college game played on it before the Steelers and Falcons squared off on Sunday. A four-game high school championship will precede the Steelers-Bengals game at Heinz Field on Nov. 24.

Pity the kickers. Heinz Field is one of the worst for field-goal kickers because of winds that come from the open end of the stadium. Kicks heading wide left go wider left, and those heading wide right veer off more to the right. So as if finding the sweet spot down the middle isn't difficult enough by itself, chewed-up field conditions will put kickers through additional hell. On kickoffs, the extra sand causes a kicker to lose his footing and not get enough power on his kicks. Field-goal kickers have to physically work the area around where the football will be placed to make sure the ground doesn't move much when they make their kicks.

Steelers owner Dan Rooney conceded to Pittsburgh-area reporters this week that Heinz Field is being used so much during the fall that artificial turf might be an option for the 2004 season. By next year, the Jets and Giants are expected to play on FieldTurf, the artificial turf getting the most favorable reviews by players recently.

Suddenly, the NFLPA's field of dreams is heading in the direction of recycled tires and used sneakers. That may not be all that bad, but what I fear is the other possibilities. Owners trying to get more use out of their stadiums might switch to FieldTurf-like surfaces to save a few bucks when it's not completely known whether the FieldTurf phenomenon is really the best answer.

Grass in the NFL is all of a sudden being treated like weeds. By 2006, the trend may swing back to artificial surfaces.

Don't be so quick to go artificial. That was the mistake of the new stadiums of the 1970s. AstroTurf was the rage. Homeowners put it in their yards. Cities put it in their multi-purpose stadiums that could house football and baseball teams.

Unfortunately, too many of those early fake-turf surfaces lacked the padding to save the legs of players, who immediately began complaining of sore knees and ankles. Seams in the turf, as well as the grip of the surface itself, caused a dramatic increase of serious knee injuries.

This year, the NFL has 11 artificial fields and 21 grass fields, but watch the number of grass field dwindle because of FieldTurf. Don't get me wrong. FieldTurf is the best of the evils of artificial surfaces. It looks like grass and seems to have the right amount of cushion. Eleven NFL teams have it as the surface on at least one of their practice fields. The Seahawks and Lions put FieldTurf in their new stadiums.

Still, there are no studies that show FeildTurf is indeed safer for the players. When in doubt, go to FieldTurf, but don't give up on grass completely just because this one surface seems to be the alternative for football stadiums being used more than 10 times a year.

The problem is that teams that switch from grass to artificial turf will be reluctant to give grass another chance. FieldTurf has an eight-year guarantee, so no converting team will tear out its new turf field on a whim.

It costs between $800,000 and $1.2 million to install FieldTurf. It costs $28,000 each time a field is re-sodded. Of course, there is more maintenance and upkeep on grass. And, naturally, there is more wear and tear on a grass field.

You can see where all this is heading, and that's a shame. More thought needs to be put into saving grass fields. Maybe that means paying big money to the right person to nurture the field. That should be a position that's not taken lightly.

The one thing that probably won't change, though, is that cities will share their facilities. Most are publicly financed buildings that cost the taxpayers dearly. It's nice to offer the stadium for high-school championships. Certain situations such as Heinz Field exist where a college team also uses the field.

As it turns out, only the Meadowlands is used more during the football season than Heinz Field. It shows. Heinz Field has a sand base. Sand helps drainage. It also enables grass to grow quicker. But grass pulls out of sand much easier, which explains the big chunks of grass that come loose during games.

Fortunately, Steelers owner Dan Rooney is a patient traditionalist who will exhaust all other options before going to FieldTurf in 2004. He's flying in experts to get the stadium through this year and next season. In Cincinnati, there is already talk about going to artificial turf next year. The Giants and Jets will all but certainly use FieldTurf next year.

Other East Coast teams might follow the trend. Owners mistakenly might be thinking that players love FieldTurf. Given the choice between a bad grass field, AstroTurf or FieldTurf, players naturally will side with FieldTurf. It's acceptable. But a grass field -- properly maintained -- is still the best.

The new field in Texas Stadium (which is FieldTurf) is considered too spongy. There have been plenty of injuries on the field at the University of Illinois where the Bears play this season. And has there ever been a safe surface in Veteran Stadium, the monument of what's wrong with artificial fields?

High ankle injuries and foot problems have plagued the league this season, and there is no clear pattern that puts the blame on any field. The injuries are happening on grass and on turf. And if there is a growing new phase of stadiums going to turf, it's going to cause a lot of experimenting with shoes. That could lead to more injuries.

Thank heavens FieldTurf came along and provided an acceptable alternative to AstroTurf. But don't be too quick to jump to it. The Meadowlands needs to go to FieldTurf because it is such a busy facility. No problem, there.

But Heinz Field, Paul Brown Stadium and others in the east should try to stay with grass. Sure, the condition of the field in Pittsburgh may take away some of the home-field edge, particularly for the kickers.

But the NFL's field of dreams shouldn't be artificial.

John Clayton is a senior writer for ESPN.com.