Ethical Dilemmas: The Role Of Concussions In Professional Sports

The National Football League on Dec. 3, 2009, announced that it would impose its most stringent rules to date on managing concussions, requiring players who exhibit any significant sign of concussion to be removed from a game or practice and be barred from returning the same day.

Many memories are made in football, but sadly some of the greatest players cannot recall them. The National Football League has been associated with concussions and brain traumas throughout the years, but lately it has been exposed by media and NFL veterans. The league recently “reached a $765 million preliminary settlement with thousands of former players who were suing the league over its treatment of concussions…” (Waldron). Many former players are experiencing the effects of taking hard hits over and over again; they were not properly treated, which makes the injury worse and long term. The concussion issue in the NFL is more prevalent today, because it affects not only the players, but the league as a whole.

A concussion is an injury suffered in the brain of an individual that can affect and alter a person’s ability to perform not only mentally, but physically as well. The New York Daily News reported on one of the finest cases of how serious the NFL is taking the issue on concussions, the current lawsuit that reached a “$765 million settlement reached between the two sides, 18,000 concussion suffer and the NFL” which states causes for important untold information the NFL refused to report to players about the prospective dangers concussions had for their long-term health, though this was later shot down by a federal judge claiming that it was insufficient sum. An NFL player may succumb from thousands of hits to the head playing football all

In the 2017 season, 5.7% of NFL players suffered a concussion. 19% of concussions were caused when a player hit the ground. So instead of changing the helmets, the NFL has changed their rules. The first rule they changed was the kickoff rule. Before kickoffs caused 33% of the total injury numbers (Jones 2018). The NFL has changed kickoff, so the players don’t get a head start to run. In two years, kickoffs racked up over 70 concussions (Mills 2016).The next rule they made is no chop blocks. Chop blocks are when an offensive player puts their shoulder into a players' thigh or

It is to me understanding that each and every NFL football player is taught everyday to play hard and hit hard. NFL players know that they are taking a massive risk of getting injured every time they step a foot on a football field, whether it be for a game or just practice. If you have the football in your possession, you should be able to take a hit anywhere on your body, even if it is on your helmet. There is no point in time where a line should be drawn. If a player makes helmet-to-helmet contact unintentionally, he should not be fined as much as if it were intentional.

All throughout sports, the topic of concussions seems to become more prevalent everyday. For the past couple years, concussions have become the topic to talk about in the NFL. First to understand how prevalent a concussion is in the sports world, you need to know what it is. As stated on mayoclinic.org, a concussion is a traumatic brain injury that alters the way your brain functions. Now you can imagine why this is such a problem. Which leaves us to wonder, are the protocols in the NFL working?

Most players have learned to inflict pain to the other person they are tackling or trying to get the ball. NFL have made new rule changes because of players leading with the head and also trying to hit the players head. When a player is targeted it means that a player aimed at an opponent for purposes of attacking with an apparent intent that goes beyond making a legal tackle or a legal block or playing the ball (Redding). The player who made the tackle will be ejected from the game. These types of hits are causing the concussions and also not knowing how to properly

We all know of someone who has a concussion or who has had a concussion before; maybe even you personally have had one. Concussions need to be taken seriously, whether the victim is under the impression that they got hit forcefully or not they could have a concussion. A concussion is a knock on the head that disturbs the brain. In a concussion the brain may become bruised as it rocks back and forth in the skull. Whatever the victim does, they shouldn’t make things worse and if their head hurts, they should not overdo anything in any of their work, just take it gentle. On average, NFL players get their brains rattled on a weekly basis with an average of 6 each, according to the NFL’s own figures. Out of all high school athletes, thousands

Getting a concussion in NFL football is completely different than concussions in high school, Middle school, or little league football. After getting a concussion myself and watching “League of Denial” I realize how serious they are and how poorly the NFL treated them. The NFL never had any professionals researching what the long term effects of getting concussions over and over were, They just assumed that it wasn't that big of a deal. They would put people back into the game even after they knew that they had a concussion which put them at a bigger risk than before. This makes me scared because they started to say that high school and middle school football players are allowed to go back into the game after their

The Washington Post says in important situations for quarterbacks, teams or medical officials seem to ignore concussion protocol. Many football players all showed enough symptoms or suffered a hard enough hit, that they should have been removed and given full battery tests and they were not (Kilgore). The football players need tests and here coaches ar ignoring protocol and not having their best interests at heart. Another case of the concussion protocol being ignored was with Matt Moore. After an obviously violent collision, Matt Moore should have been taken to the locker room for a full checkup. Symptoms can start to show minutes after the damage has occurred. Moore could have not suffered a brain injury and it's wrong to just assume (Kilgore). Matt Moore payed the price because the concussion protocol was ignored. If the concussion protocol was more heavily enforced Matt Moore would have not had to suffer and would have been

I've never really been big on watching NFL but now knowing how they handle head traumas makes me not want to support it at all. It’s crazy to me how professional medical people can just ignore true scientific findings like that. Several more athletes after Mike webster suffered head injuries from getting their “bell rung” but nothing was really done about it after they were hit and knocked out they returned to the game after feeling a little better and waking up. Someone's health is way more important than success in a game.

Since Seau’s death, concussion protocol has been raised hugely by the NFL. First and foremost, the NFL now has an “eye in the sky” for each NFL game that is played. A certified athletic trainer now watches every single play from a press box that’s just above field level. This allows players to have more reassured safety when taking big hits. If there is even a thought of something that these medical trainers’ thinks look serious, they radio in a signal to the medical staff on the field. This is especially helpful since medical staff on the field sometimes miss certain plays. If a player is pulled aside, the then do a six part concussion test to see if they player can remain in the game. This includes consciousness, unresponsiveness, confusion, amnesia, eye sight, and balance. In an article posted by NFL.com, they state the thoroughness of concussion protocol after the steps I listed above: “This sideline test includes the same tests performed as part of the pre-season baseline concussion assessment, as well as some additional questions. Like the preseason evaluation, the test measures, memory, concentration and balance, as well as measuring how quickly and thoroughly the player recalls words given to them at least five minutes earlier. As in the preseason examination, the team doctor asks players to name the month, date, day of week, year and time. The additional questions include specific sideline orientation questions that ask players to identify the venue, quarter of

First, I am going to talk about the science behind concussions, CTE, and why it is such an issue for a football player. Concussions are very damaging to the brain and experiencing a lot of them can lead to CTE. I will also discuss people that influenced the understanding of concussions and CTE. In 2002, a neurologist named Dr. Bennet Omalu tried to tell the NFL about the brain damage he found while doing a former NFL player’s autopsy, but the NFL did not really listen. In 2009, another researcher by the name of Dr. Ann Mckee tried to get the NFL’s attention about her concerns about football players and concussions as well. The NFL once again ignored these assumptions. However, the NFL did listen to Dr. Elliot Pellman, who told the league as early as 1994, that concussions were not a big problem and just part of the game. I will discuss how NFL players were treated when they got their “bell rung” during a big game; and what kind of medical treatment they

The number of concussions in professional and amateur football has been rising and has sparked much controversy in recent years. These concussions are most likely linked with disease and even the deaths of some pro and semi-pro football players. New research is attempting to solve the problem but the issue is still prevalent in football today.

When it comes to selecting the most feasible alternative to this issue the NFL has decided to fine and suspend players who purposely deliver helmet to helmet contact. They have also spent money on more advance helmets that help prevent head injuries. The NFL has also created a hotline in which players can call to report abuse. Some players have been forced by coaches to participate in practices days after receiving a concussion. The NFL could also conduct further research by hiring independent labs to study the effects of concussions. Some current players have also decided to donate their brains after they die in order to