Cleveland Browns' Stadium vandalized ahead of matchup with Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Tampa Bay Buccaneers are scheduled for a Sunday afternoon road contest in Cleveland following a BYE week. The Buccaneers have won two consecutive games to climb back to 5-5 while the Browns have dropped six of their last seven contests. It's been a struggle for the team on and off the field, literally.
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Ahead of the matchup with the Buccaneers, the grounds crew is getting busy in Cleveland following an incident inside FirstEnergy Stadium.
On Tuesday, News 5 Cleveland reported that the field inside the stadium was damaged when an unidentified individual used a golf cart or some other type of vehicle to drive around. The joy ride left visible tire marks and ruts on multiple areas of the field. According to the report, staff was spotted using a road roller to try and patch up the field.
The Browns reported the incident to the Cleveland Division of Police. The Cleveland Police Department is investigating the incident as a break-in, with early indications that someone jumped a fence.
In a statement, the Browns stated that they're confident the damage should not affect Sunday's matchup with the Buccaneers. Repairs are underway with multiple days remaining until kickoff.
“We are aware of the incident that occurred early Tuesday morning at FirstEnergy Stadium and have provided the Cleveland Division of Police with all relevant information. Based on our internal evaluation, there was some superficial damage to the playing field that our grounds maintenance team is currently working to repair. We take great pride in the strong reviews and reputation of our stadium’s playing surface, have been in touch with the NFL on the matter and are confident after repair our field will be ready for Sunday’s game vs. the Tampa Buccaneers."
Tampa Bay and Cleveland are scheduled to kick off at 1 p.m. and the game will be broadcast on FOX.
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