The NYT War on Football Continues

Given all the traumatic brain injuries the military has suffered in Afghanistan and Iraq it's a bit of a can of worms for Congress to start asking the NFL and The NCAA to clean up their act.

If I had a son I would rather him play football instead of joining the military at this point.

 

Putting more pressure on the NCAA is all well and good, but I wouldn't be surprised if when the Institute of Medicine releases its study on youth sports and concussions, it comes to the conclusion that a lot of the damage has already been done by the time a player gets to college. I mean, you've got kids who play tackle football starting at age 6 -- that's a lot of hits over a lot of years. There's also been talk about teaching better tackling, but the issue on the youth level is that no matter how well you teach, it takes a long time for kids to learn body control. I saw more crashing and carnage in third- and fourth-grade basketball games I coached than I ever see at a high school game.

 

How about both? My 15-year-old is in JROTC and football.

 

Very possible re: damage being done before college. As many others have noted, that's likely the biggest threat to the long-term future of the sport. For obvious, previously-discussed reasons.

Still, the NCAA's lack of even trying to make this problem slightly better is particularly galling and ironic given their supposed founding mission. Everyone knows they're an economic-cartel-cum-restrain-of-trade association masquerading as a paternalistic, for-the-students organization. Would it kill them to play better lip service?

I disagree with you on the "safer tackling" notion. Think that's bogus and an affront to physics and biology.

On the other hand, you're exactly right: the less hits to the head and less rotational force on brain tissue, the better.

 

Not sure if you thought I was for the "safer tackling" argument. I'm not. I mean, better teaching in any sports goes a long way, but can teach all the "safe tackling" you want, and kids are still going to conk noggins.

 

Kids get used to tackling a certain way. A buddy of mine played for rugby internationally and had to quit because of concussions. He said he couldn't shake bad tackling habits from playing football in high school.

 

"Safer tackling" is a relative term. Some of the "safer" tackling techniques that I see being taught are harder to execute and in my mind put younger players at more risk.

The techniques have been developed by well intentioned people but with little research and no empirical evidence that they will be safer in the long run.

 

Bob, I misunderstood you. My bad.

Boom, amen.

I mean, it doesn't hurt to try stuff to minimize football brain trauma risk. But the "safer tackling" initiatives are so clearly PR puffery. Also, there was a wave of the same stuff in the 1960s/70s. Not sure the exact date. A little before my time, and by time, I mean existence. Was talking to a football historian about it recently. He could barely keep a straight face.