Audience & Purpose:
This report is meant to address the need for the neuroscience community to focus more on the socio and psychological desire for violent sports, such as the National Football League (NFL) and the historical evidence of social appeal that dates back to ancient Rome. Introduction:
The study of Rome presents an opportunity to relate the past to the present, and analyze how social behaviors have prevailed overtime through sport. Although sent to their death within the arena, the ancient public of Rome glorified gladiators. They supplied an outlet for the public to visually glorify war and violence, while being able to choose a desired hero to root for. Similarly, the professional football players who play in the NFL
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Webster who has gone down in sports history as one of the best centers ever to play in the NFL, was known as being “the indestructible force of four Super Bowl champions, the center of gravity of the Steeler dynasty,” and as former Steeler quarterback Terry Bradshaw called him, ‘our strength,’ (League of Denial 4). What for years was not widely known to the public though was that of his declining mental status. After years of hard-hits, and minimal medical treatment or examinations, Webster would finally seen by “a forensic psychiatrist at the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center named Jonathan Himmelhoch. Himmelhoch would examine Webster six times over three months, more extensively than any other doctor…”(League of Denial 90). After thoroughly examining Webster, Himmelhoch wrote a devastating six-page summation of how Webster had been mentally and physically destroyed by football. Describing Webster as a confirmed ‘encephalopath,’ whose care had ‘been delivered by doctors working for two maters – 1st the Pittsburgh Steelers and second, Michael L. Webster,’(League of Denial 90). The same doctors whom for years had not only allowed, but encouraged Webster to play hurt. Himmelhoch’s also stated within his report that, ‘full recovery of subtle head injury is a necessity before resuming any job. If there is no recovery period, subtle, then manifest cortical injury is insured. One can conclude, therefore, to reasonable medical certainty that Mr. Weber’s progressive deteriorating encephalopathy began while he was still playing NFL football,’ (League of Denial
CTE is a brain disease found in individuals with annals of head trauma. It has specifically been found in athletes with numerous concussions. So far it can only be diagnosed in the deceased, but Dr. Julian Bales and his staff in UCLA have discovered symptoms in living players such as Hall of Famer Anthony “Tony” Dorsett, Hall of Famer Joe DeLamielleure, and NFL All-Pro Leonard Marshall. CTE can cause memory loss, dementia, depression, suicidal thoughts, cognitive and emotional difficulties (Waldron par 1, 2, 3). Is it a compelling issue? A total of 171 concussions were reported in the NFL in the 2012-2013 season; 88 thus far in the 2013-2014 season (Frontline pt). Those are just numbers in the professional level. There are thousands of kids playing football either in youth, middle school, high school, or college level. The diagnosis is currently in progress, researchers are optimistic this could lead to a legitimate treatment, how to manage, and hopefully a cure. Furthermore, this can also possibly lead to an answer to a connection between football and chronic traumatic encephalopathy. Junior Seau, Mike Webster, Terry Long, and Justin Strzelczyk (all of whom are dead now) are all men who played in the NFL for an extent period of time. This is not the only thing they have in common. These former players had an uncustomary
After Mike Webster retired, he started acting weird like living in his car for 18 months. He went to go see a doctor but with all of his brain injuries his attention span and concentration made him hard to help. In the four super bowls that the Steelers won, Mike Webster and 22 other players were part of that. Mike Webster was the player of those 22 that played for the longest in Pittsburgh(15 years). Even though he was the last person from the 22 to go away from the Steelers he was the first to die at the age of 50. Mike Webster bought a taser just to get to sleep, he would zap himself until he fell asleep. When the NFL found out about Mike Webster and how bad the injuries were, that is when the NFL started to do something about the concussions. The NFL started talking about how they could avoid the injuries of concussions. In 2015 when people made the movie Concussion, they went deep into about what Mike Webster did and what happened to
In the Mike Webster Sports Injury Series articles, the details of Mike Webster and his condition surrounded the fact that he was the face of football for seventeen years. Webster had missed special events because of football, and upon retiring began to miss events because of his health (Garber). In his prime, he was rich, in shape, and he did what he loved. He sustained many injuries during
Gladiator games and football have more similarities than we believe. The number one component is violence. Crowds scream in excitement as the Coliseum gets covered in blood in the gladiatorial games. Comparing to today, fans scream and cheer as two teams tackle each other in a football game. Looking at modern day sports and the gladiator games, they suggest that football has just as much violence as the gladiator games played in the Roman times.
The connection between sports and politics in the Ancient Roman world can be summarized by one
In 2002, Mike Webster, a legendary football player, suddenly died at the age of 50. After examining his body, Dr. Bennet Omalu became curious as to what exactly was the cause of Webster’s death. Being a neuropathologist, Dr. Omalu knew Webster’s death was related to his brain. Omalu took samples of Webster’s brain and studied it over
The documentary, The League of Denial examines the issue of brain injuries in the National Football League. The film devotes most of its attention to the story of Mike Webster, who died at the age of fifty as a result of severe brain injuries suffered throughout his playing career. Webster’s story highlights the devastating effect concussions can have in a short timeframe. Because brain injuries are known to develop quickly it is important that the NFL responds quickly to this concussion crisis. The NFL is the most popular professional sports league in the world: according to Forbes Magazine the NFL generated over $9 billion in revenue this past year. Despite this success the NFL faces a legitimate threat against brain injuries and concussions. Although the NFL is popular, they should still be proactive in their fight against concussions because of the amount of money they generate, the health of their former players, and lastly the willingness of future athletes to play their sport.
Roman charioteers and Roman gladiators were at the pinnacle of the entertainment industry during ancient Roman times. They both had large followings, were keys to political power, and were the reasons for architectural masterpieces. Charioteers and gladiators, however, were quite different in many ways. They had differences in backgrounds, in risks of their profession, in their professional careers, and in the various things they can stand for and represent.
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.
On the morning of December first of two thousand and twelve, Kansas City Chiefs linebacker Jovan Belcher took a .40 caliber gun and shot his girlfriend 22 times inside his master bedroom. He then drove down to Arrowhead Stadium, the Chief’s home stadium, to express his appreciation to his team’s general manager and coach for everything they had done for him, walked away, and then shot himself in the head. This tragic recollection of the murder-suicide case executed by the 25 year old football player paints him as a monstrous and willfully violent man but what if one was to acclaim all of these fatal incidents to too many bumps in the head? Well it has been. Years after this incident, after medical examiners conducted an autopsy on Belcher and they found that his brain showed signs of CTE, chronic traumatic encephalopathy, a disease caused by repetitive traumatic head injuries, also denoted as concussions. There have been many documented cases where after contact sport athletes experience excessive concussions, they then seem to develop a seemingly new character as they come to be ill fully violent, overtly aggressive, or even deeply depressive. Many times this may lead to the diagnosis of a mental disorder or may end tragically, as in Belchers case, in the death of others and/or the athletes themselves.
It is the moment football fans live for: the running back brakes through the line and heads up the field only to be sacked moments later. In the time it takes for the crowd to stand and cheer, the running back has forgotten where he is. His struggle to remember the four words he was just given on the sidelines increases every moment. His obvious concussion will keep him from playing for a few weeks but then he will be as good as new and ready to play again, right? But what about the long term affects of his concussion? When Mike Webster died at the age of 50 in 2002 from heart failure, his autopsy showed more than just a heart condition. Dr. Omalu, from the University of Pittsburgh found chronic traumatic encephalopathy or CTE, which shows atrophy to the brain similar to Alzheimer 's. CTE is a progress degenerative brain disease said to be caused by repetitive brain trauma, such as hard hits in football (Tanaka and Wells). Dr. Omalu 's discovery of CTE has brought up many questions including what is CTE and what are its effects, and did the NFL know about the possibility of CTE and why do they keep denying its existence. Because of Omalu 's discovery CTE and the NFL are in the limelight as players past and present worry if they are at risk. As more and more people learn about CTE, the level of urgency to find answers to these questions rises. In response, the NFL and other companies are backing research in hopes of finding ways to prevent and cure CTE, all while learning
It was not until Dr. Bennet Omalu examined, NFL superstar, Mike Webster’s brain. While Webster was alive, he was examined and it was found that he developed dementia due to his multiple concussions (NFL Concussion Fast Facts). Unfortunately, Webster ended up committing suicide; however, it was believed to be linked to his brain damage. Omalu took a close look at his brain and discovered that Webster had CTE. Omalu was the first to identify CTE in American football players (NFL Concussion Fast Facts). CTE is a degenerative disease of the brain and is associated with repeated head traumas, like concussions. It was also found that a total of seven NFL players, that had committed suicide, all had CTE developed in their brains. All of these different findings showed why it was even more important for the NFL to fix the
Football is America’s go to entertainment sport. The NFL hit its peak in 2015, with an average of 114.1 million television viewers throughout the year (“Statista,” 2017). This sport is loved by all, the players, parents, coaches, and fans. But, is football merely entertainment? Is it just a simple game, teaching young boys the value of teamwork, dedication, and discipline? Are parents spending their Friday nights to support their boys, or is there something bigger happening? In H.G Bissinger’s novel, Friday Night Lights, one can see the true effects of this toxic drug through the mindset of the players and the actions of the coaches. While society sees football as entertainment, it actually functions more like a drug.
In recent years countless newscasts have been filled with stories pertaining to the physical repercussions of football on its players. Don Banks, the author of “What Price Football?” informs his audience how just recently, the NFL has agreed to pay $765 million to former players to make the concussion-related lawsuits acting against them, disappear. Now, obviously this “settlement” remains ineffective to the ultimate goal of bringing a halt to these injuries because the game continues to be played unchanged and unabated. Chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE) is a progressive degenerative disease that has become more apparent in players of the National Football League. Several retired players such as Chicago Bears safety Dave Duerson and All-Pro Linebacker Junior Seau, have committed suicide. Research and medical evidence suggests that CTE may have played a role in these deaths. According to Jim Trotter’s Sports Illustrated article “Heading For Trouble,” currently more than 1,000 former and current players are plaintiffs against the NFL, claiming the league failed to adequately treat concussions and educate players about potential long-term consequences of brain trauma. These facts prove that the NFL’s clear higher motive pertains to the money profited from the sport versus conducting a game that ensures every players safety. Professional football will remain a life-threatening
a degenerative disease that develops over months, years, or even decades of time after repetitive head blows. “An Attempt for One More Appeal in the NFL Concussion Case” says that lawyers for long time NFL running back, Cookie Gilchrist, compiled evidence to counter the league's claims that his CTE was not sustained from playing football. Despite the claims, experts and lawyers helped prove otherwise by looking at records and data. They concluded that after so many years of playing and getting hit, and so many concussions that were reported not including the ones not reported, that that is why he died of CTE. Former players could agree with the findings of private investigators by sharing stories and experiences. After this football took an even bigger shot to its