True, but thats part of the deal they would be signing when they join the league. I think its fair if the NFL wrote out the risks to your health and were honest about them, as long as players agree to those risks then they should be allowed to play. I do understand my thought process is not the most humane way, but I think it works for everyone. No one should be playing football if they expect to live their live after football pain free.
I used to feel the same way, but over time the depths of how badly the game affects your brain have become more and more impossible to ignore. Right now, I feel like my Football viewing is on a clock. Every year, it gets more and more uncomfortable to watch, which means I enjoy it less and less. At some point, even the most hardcore football fan is going to watch the game and not think "wow, that was badass," but "Omg, what if years down the road that player's going to commit suicide because of that hit."
Some aspects of the game are going to be what they are. If the players want to play and the viewers want to watch, then so be it. Nagging body injuries especially. But the brain damage is too gruesome, and at some point it becomes a moral issue to have a sport that is basically a brain damage factory.
What's worse is how the NFL's approaching this. They hid this information. We all know it. It just hasn't been proven in court. It's the same problem cigarette companies had. Once you get past all the bullshit, the NFL is moving on this very slowly because it would be a tacit admission they made a mistake in the first place.
The thing is, in the outside world that doesn't matter. Inevitably, some Football fans would complain that the game is getting soft. Shit, I did. But reality wins every argument. Football was almost banned once, and it can be banned again far enough into the future if it isn't fixed. Right now, the league's strategy is working. But it can't work forever. Better to work proactively (more reasonable PED rules, weight standards for players, better tackling rules), than to wait until it's too late. I hated the kick-off rule change, but it was actually one of the smartest things the league did.
I have an Uncle who's letting his two sons play Football. I asked about the safety implications. He said that you have to teach kids how to tackle right by wrapping their arms around the other player instead of banging them. If you do that, then the game is being played right. My uncle is not the kind of person who you would say is "socially conscious," but even he wants the game to be safer if only because his sons are playing it.
This needs to happen and it can happen. Will it?
Topic: Why Isn't American Football More Popular Outside of America? (Read 27144 times)