https://www.google.com/amp/s/amp.cnn.com/cnn/2017/07/25/health/cte-nfl-players-brains-study/index.html

A recent study has shown a definitive link between long term football play and brain degeneration. Curious about how many of you have had this affect your love for football, or have pulled your children out of football. I have a 4 year old and wonder if i will let him play. Its hard to know that many of the players we cheer now, might end up in a horrible state as they get older.

I personally have been a long time boxing fan and have seen the effects of fighters I have cheered for slip into the abyss. I have continued to watch the sport even as I knew that many fighters were selling years of their life as they went tough rounds. However, I am seriously shocked at how destructive football can be to the brain.  The risk of pain while you are older is overpowered by the pursuit of glory and wealth as a young man. What are your opinions? Will this be the beginning of the end for football? Is it overblown?

I don't think it's overblown. I also don't think it'll be the end of football. It seems like steps are being taken to get this thing under control.

WTS, men will still take the risk, no matter the potential consequences. A guy can change the fortunes of the future generations of his family playing in the NFL. That's a large incentive to take the chance.

My prediction is that technology will save the day eventually. They'll develop helmets and other equipment to mitigate this.

There may be some rule changes too...such as eliminating kickoffs altogether.

(07-25-2017, 01:14 PM)THE PISTONS Wrote: My prediction is that technology will save the day eventually. They'll develop helmets and other equipment to mitigate this.

There may be some rule changes too...such as eliminating kickoffs altogether.

Until they can install equipment inside your skull, there is nothing that can stop what causes CTE. EVERY single impact that a football player (and many other athletes) takes causes the brain to bang against the inside of the skull. This doesn't necessarily cause a confusion every time. I've seen a lot of comments on CTE being related to concussions, but you can get CTE never having had a concussion that had symptoms.

There is no way to get around impact other than to advance helmets. Much like Indy and other race tracks have engineered their walls.

At the youth level, there will likely be a change over time. Especially if students/parents start filing suits over concussions.

I doubt it will have much impact on college or pros. There's way too much money involved. As with steroids and the precautions taken to discourage their use decades ago, the league is working on rules to mitigate concussions. They will keep working in that direction. Will people still get them? Sure, they get them in every sport. But the league will be able to say 'hey, we cleaned things up.'

I tried to be realistic, but the bottom line is: No matter how dangerous the sport is, there will always be people lining up to play it because it is their ticket to a great potential financial windfall. There need to be improvements in the equipment and there will continue to be rule adaptations to try and decrease the number of CTE cases, but as players keep getting bigger and stronger, I feel they are fighting a losing battle.

I do believe the NFL will actually adopt the college "targeting" rules in the next few years.

what about taking the helmet off of players?  that'll cut down a lot on these problems.  There is no helmet in existence right now that can stop the brain injuries from happening.  So, lets just take them off and play without helmets.

I'd like to see CTE results in rugby players.  Do they have the same problems? 

I waited til the 8th Grade before I did full contact football.
I think it depends on the body as well. Some of my friends have knee issues and they played Pee-Wee football while others did not. I just waited so that my body was more mature and I never had any issues or major injuries. The worst that happened to me was I charged the hole on a blitz and ran smack into the RB who had lowered his head. Pretty big boom and we both flew backwards, I got up after a few seconds of WTF just happened, the other guy didn't return to the game. He fumbled and we recovered haha. I didn't exhibit any concussion symptoms, so I was right back out there on the next defensive series.

But as long as the big bucks are offered, people will play.

The study is kinda of flawed because they only did players that were know to have syptoms of CTE which was said in the study. It's still significant though and NFL and the football community has to continue to take concussion and hits to the head very seriously. I don't worry so much about Americans losing interest or stop playing the game but with the sport trying to grow around the world I think it could have a negative effect the growth of the game globally.

(07-26-2017, 01:52 PM)BengalHawk62 Wrote: what about taking the helmet off of players?  that'll cut down a lot on these problems.  There is no helmet in existence right now that can stop the brain injuries from happening.  So, lets just take them off and play without helmets.

I'd like to see CTE results in rugby players.  Do they have the same problems? 

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/film/concussion/is-rugby-or-american-football-more-dangerous/

doesn't exactly answer your question, but some food for thought.

I wrote a column a few years back about taking the helmets off. One high school coach said something that article touches on: you might bring down the number of concussions, but neck/spinal injuries are going to increase. Linemen pushing pockets are going to be at a huge risk there, as are players going up for receptions/deflections.

And from a business stand point, the NFL is probably hesitant to take the helmets off. Big hits are like wrecks in NASCAR or dunks in basketball ... it's the reason a lot of the audience is watching.

(07-26-2017, 10:58 AM)Goalpost Wrote: There is no way to get around impact other than to advance helmets.  Much like Indy and other race tracks have engineered their walls.

I think helmets can only go so far though. Because the biggest problem is the brain moving around inside the skull on a sudden hit to the head, whether by a sudden hit by another player or a sudden hit directly to the turf. The helmet and skull will stop moving, and the inside of the helmet helps keep the skull from not cracking open, but the physics of the forces is what keeps the brain moving, which is not good.

It already has affected football but we all love the game too much for it to be the end.

They still will make a lot of changes though, some for the good and some for the bad.

I wonder how many of these guys would be playing football if it "only" paid 100K a year.

Concussions are so overblown at the moment. Players know the risk and outside of equipment advances not much else should be done.

(07-26-2017, 07:54 PM)reuben.ahmed Wrote: I wonder how many of these guys would be playing football if it "only" paid 100K a year.

It's better than sitting at a desk?

This is scary stuff.  I was an undersized linebacker in High School.  I made up for lack of size by being fearless and aggressive.  I considered getting my bell rung to be normal - didn't phase me as long as I made the tackle.  Played 2 years of semipro football, more of the same, but moved to CB and S.  Most of the bell ringing was in practices versus games.  In practices you make 10-15 tackles, 3-days a week.  In a game you make 5-10 tackles, and less 1-on-1 full speed as in practice.  Now I am glad I did not play in college - yikes.  Getting blocked not a big issue (other than protecting knees).

They need to have a rule where you can't use your helmet with force for any part of the tackle.  The helmet should be for protection from others - using your facemask as the tip of a missile should be a flag.  But you have to balance with calling a runner "down" faster, can't reward the runner for rules changes.

(07-26-2017, 07:54 PM)reuben.ahmed Wrote: I wonder how many of these guys would be playing football if it "only" paid 100K a year.

They would have zero trouble finding people to play for that amount.

(07-26-2017, 07:54 PM)reuben.ahmed Wrote: I wonder how many of these guys would be playing football if it "only" paid 100K a year.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/XFL

I always find these studies a tad funny..A link between football and CTE or is it a link between getting smacked in the noggin repeatedly and CTE because I have to say I've been knocked in the head more times than I really want to remember. 
Maybe they should include drunken brawls as a stupid young man and not just football.. Maybe it's just me, but some of us go through our informative years just a little too reckless.. lol
Maybe the link really is with what some of us call growing up..football, baseball, rock throwing, drunken brawls, car wrecks, pissed off wives and girlfriends and on and on...
Some days I have to marvel that I've lived this long with my head still attached to my neck.. One of the reasons I have never shaved my head has to do with the number of scars up there..