Football’s Future in Question

Football is one of the most beloved sports in the United States. It is one of the most violent bone crushing sports, leaving players permanently injured for life in some cases. The most common injury that football players suffer from pee-wee through the NFL is the concussion. A concussion is a traumatic brain injury that changes the way your brain works. The effects of a concussion are usually temporary and can result in a full recovery if its minor and treated correctly. A concussion can lead to brain problems later in life, even after a player has finished playing football. This is why people are studying and trying to understand concussions fully in order to prevent and treat future ones. Concussions are very

Aikman was not alone in his decision to retire early because of concussions, Merrill Hoge and others retired early. Most people know Merrill Hoge as a TV football analyst today. In one very sad case, concussions did lead to the loss of life of one former player. In 2012 Junior Seau took his own life after dealing with severe depression, which is one of the symptoms of CTE. In Seau 's will he donated his brain to research on CTE. Although, the concussion was not the cause of death for Mr. Seau, it did cause the symptoms that led to him taking his own life.

In 2007, the NFL finally started to take steps to slow down the rate of concussions in football (Lauren Ezell). Although concussions still occur today, there are specific protocols that were inserted to protect players’ health. This topic is so important to me because I am a big fan of the sport, and I would hate to see my favorite players end their career with disabling conditions. I hope to the see the NFL continually trying to find ways to limit concussions. I believe that one day football can be played without the risk of living the rest of your life with a critical

Throughout the basis of this position paper, I will be debating on the controversy of concussions present in the National Football League (NFL) and the sport of football in general. Currently in the National Football League, concussions are looked at as a dangerous aspect but most definitely a recoverable feature. Concussions are an

American football has been a well-known sport for over 140 years. The first college game ever played was between the Rutgers and Princeton. Little did they know about the risk that occurs when playing a physical contact sport. Some common risk that is associated with playing football is the chance of experience a concussion, disabilities caused by brain damage and sometimes death. In the essay “Would Football Without Concussions Still Be Football” written by Nina Burleigh, she discusses that it’s important to implement tougher rules to protect the safety of young football athletes to keep them safe from concussions. In other words, American football is better played when physical contact is not in place because it will protect football players

The NFL is big part of many Americans life during the fall and the off season. It’s a multi-billion dollar industry that hosts the most watched 4 hours of television in America. As an athlete who played football for many years, I wanted to ask the question; is the NFL’s new rules and penalties preventing concussions? During the first two weeks of April, I have compiled six different resources relating to this topic. Some, such as Trevor Horn’s article "Tackling seminar teaches new methods, inspires faith in safer football” cover the aspects of how youth and high schoolers are effected by concussions and what role the NFL plays. Other articles talk about research being put towards helping diagnose brain trauma in athletes, and also whether or

A great majority of kids and adults football careers are ending shortly because of brain damage and concussions. To this day scientist and people in sports are trying to find a way to decrease the number of brain damage and concussions. There been so many head injuries in the game of football. It got real serious over the past 20 years. In the NFL and College football league, players and coaches can know if someone have a concussion because of the technology they have at the game. It’s mandatory for every team in college, and in the NFL to have doctors and the technology they have at each game they have.

The effects of harsh concussions are being made aware of in the NFL and steps are being made to prevent them (Block, 4). By teaching better tackling techniques, the risk of concussions has declined and defenders have learned to keep their heads up while tackling to prevent hard hits to the helmet (Emmert, 4). Five years ago in the NFL, players could return to the field after a concussion. The league is trying to protect the players from causing extensive head trauma now and keeping the players out of the game with a concussion (Sullivan, 2). Medical experts agree that all the steps being taken to prevent concussions are great, like handling out harsher penalties for hits to the head, teaching better tackling techniques, and creating high-tech helmets, but there’s no way of knowing if they’ll stop all concussions (Emmert, 7). The NFL is spending $45 million to support youth football and protect kids from concussions, where they will also teach the young players the proper way to tackle (Pulley and Glor, 1). The NFL agreed to pay $765 million with 4,800 former players, although a US District Court judge in Philadelphia declined it, stating that it wasn’t enough money to cover all the future claims that could be reported (Emmert, 1). Surveys show that 39% of players say that the NFL rule changes on hits to the head made the game safer, but 53% said it didn’t make a difference and 8% said it was less safe (Barzilai and Brady, 2). The “League of Denial”

There is a lot of rising controversy surrounding minors and high-impact sports like football. From Elementary age kids playing little league to high school football, an increasing number of studies are surfacing that are showing many negative effects surrounding head trauma. Some experts are even calling for the sport to be banned from middle and high schools. The concerns surrounding head trauma have existed in the NFL for numerous year, and these concerns brought foreword extensive new research in detection, effects, and prevention. Even today the NFL plans to spend 100 million dollars on new prevention and treatment options for concussions. The shock absorption technology used in football helmets has made advanced majorly in the last 10 years, yet concussion rates are increasing. With the risk of head trauma having long term consequences, especially in minors with developing brains, the ideas of terminating the sport take root. Although serious, these risks are far outweighed by the benefits of football that a substitute sport can not provide: The answer to how to make football safer for minors is much simpler and cheaper than advancing technology.

The safety of young football players for years has been a long growing concern and controversy for parents, players, high school coaches and school officials, and as well as NFL coaches and medical professionals in America. Parents worry about their children getting injured or concussions during the game. Furthermore, many parents believe that football can be safer and that the organization of football is not doing enough to protect players and their safety. However, to some football players concussions are not a big issue. Some players are too worried about their playing time to realize the consequences of getting concussions repeatedly. Therefore, some football players do not tell the coaches about their concussions. In addition, coaches also have a problem with the safety of football affecting their programs. Some coaches fear that football programs will shut down because of the controversy of how football can lead to brain damage. Besides parents, players, and coaches, doctors have a big say in the controversy. Neurologists, who are specialists in the disorders of nerves and the nervous system, have recently studied the link between football and brain damage. According to Jacob Vanlandingham, who is the founder and president of Prevacus Incorporated, a company who primarily studies concussions, said that “Doctors diagnose approximately 67,000 concussions in high school football players every year” (Vanlandingham, p.1). Nevertheless, some stakeholders, including ex-football players, believe that everything has already been done to make football as safe as possible. Football organizations have made new rules and placed new programs in order to keep young players healthy and to keep football programs from shutting down. The big controversial question that all stakeholders are asking is, “Is football doing enough to protect young children?”

Sports hold tremendous value in American society and all athletes have at least one thing in common: the risk of getting a concussion. A concussion is a traumatic brain injury (TBI) that results from a direct/indirect action or force that causes the brain to shake rapidly within the skull (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention [CDC], 2016). This injury can mildly or severely affect the brain’s function by damaging brain cells and producing chemical alterations (CDC, 2016). Throughout the years, concussions have been more prevalent not only in professional sports, but among youth, college, and recreational sports as well. Despite the remarkably high statistics on concussions in the U.S., many cases still go unreported (Groce & Urankar, 2016, p. 22). Sustaining this injury can significantly set a person back physically, mentally, and emotionally. Due to the risks and health issues associated with concussions doctors, athletic trainers, coaches, and lawmakers are getting involved to protect athletes of all levels from receiving concussions.

Current United States statistics indicate approximately 7 million head injuries occur each year. Seven hundred thousand of these relate to sports and recreational activities, and three hundred thousand relate directly to sports. Eight deaths occur each year in professional football due to brain injury (Genuardi & King, 1995). These deaths most commonly result from subdural hematoma, when blood collects within the brain, and the associated brain injury. About 20% of participants in high school football suffer a concussion in a single season. Ongoing studies by the National Athletic Trainers Association showed, “a 17% increase in minor head injuries and an 85% increase in moderate head injuries in high school football comparing the 1980s to the 1990s” (Powell, 1998). A portion of these increases is because of better and more comprehensive reporting systems but the risk of concussion remains. Further, a football player who suffers one mild brain injury (MBI) has four times the risk to sustain a second MBI (Young, Jocobs,Clavette, Mark, & Guse, 1997).

Billions of dollars have been spilled into concussion research. One thing that has been proven through this research is that football players face the greatest risk of concussions. This includes all sports, even NCAA and NFL football. Helmets nowadays all have a warning that reads similar to: NO HELMET SYSTEM CAN PROTECT YOU FROM SERIOUS BRAIN AND/OR NECK INJURIES INCLUDING PARALYSIS OR DEATH. TO AVOID THESE RISKS, DO NOT ENGAGE IN THE SPORT OF FOOTBALL. Many people with ties to football argue that the benefits of football significantly outweigh the risks associated. Football people know that concussions can’t be eliminated totally, but they do believe that concussions can be slowed by proper tackling techniques as well as better technology. Even though football may lead to neurodegenerative brain diseases, the benefits of football far and away outweigh these inherited risks.

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.

Football can be a very dangerous sport. And although those who play the game believe that they are being protected by the helmets that they wear, the truth is that this may not be the case. In a recent study released by the American Academy of Neurology it has been found that “protection against concussion and complications of brain injury is especially important for young players, including elementary and middle school, high school and college athletes, whose still-developing brains are more susceptible to the lasting effects of trauma”(Science Daily, 2014). The study also found that standard football helmets worn by the majority of players on the field today, only reduce the risk of traumatic brain injury by 20 percent compared to not wearing a helmet at all (Science Daily, 2014).