Football in Trouble?

[Tonus]

I can't remember the podcast it was on - perhaps "Straight Dope" - but part of the discussion was that football got more dangerous as protection got better due to some sort of risk threshold.

Yep. The better the equipment becomes at protecting the players from obvious injuries, the less vulnerable they feel, and the more willing they are to hit each other even harder. When players wore leather helmets and only a few pads, leading with your head was likely to result in a severe concussion if not a cracked skull or broken neck. But the equipment they use today is designed to absorb impact and cushion the neck, and players have no compunction about ramming each other with their helmets.

The problem, as Min mentioned, is CTE. Even if the helmet protects your skull and the padding protects your neck, the momentum from a violent collision will cause the brain to slam into the skull. Even on seemingly harmless hits, that causes damage to the brain which accumulates with each successive hit.

It's the reason why the highest incidence of CTE appears to be in defensive and offensive linemen, who are rarely involved in the high-speed ultra-violent collisions that lead to the most obvious injuries. But on each play, these 265-325 pound guys lunge at each other from about a foot away, slamming their helmets into one another as they jockey for position or seek to shed a blocker. They almost never come out of a game due to a concussion, but they're taking the worst beating on the field.

[Napoléon]

Not bad, Napo, but try doing some of these without pads.

I think most people with eyesight would see that the rugby hits are more 'impressive'.

It's easy to get tossed around like a rag doll when the pads take most of the impact for you.

I really shouldn't knock American football though, I'm just bitter that when I tried out for my university team all the people were assholes and the coach was a fucking prick. The sport itself is rather enjoyable to watch.

[Aractus]

The pads actually allow them to hit each other even harder, but as Min. pointed out, the problem is with the head injuries.

Yeah, head clashes is the primary reason why the shoulder-charge has been banned in the NRL starting this season.

[frz]

Oh.

I thought this thread was about football.



A cheap shot I know.

Well, they do kick it eventually.

[Minimalist]

Pussy sports.....

For sheer out crazy bastards on testosterone overdrive it takes hockey.

[frz]

Pussy sports.....

For sheer out crazy bastards on testosterone overdrive it takes hockey.

I never understood this in hockey, the fighting has nothing to do with the game. They should just call it, "fight night with a little hockey on the side".

[Tonus]

There don't seem to be many fights in the NHL anymore. They're also trying to make the game "safer" by penalizing certain types of hits. Scott Stevens couldn't exist in today's NHL.

[Minimalist]

the fighting has nothing to do with the game.

The fans like it. Each team has a designated goon and when they line up against each other early in the game you know they are going to start a "fight" as soon as the puck drops. It's a good time to go take a leak.

But those open ice hits are the real violence in hockey, not the "fighting."

[CapnAwesome]

As much as I love sports, there is a point where we should promote academia first and if you want to encourage your children to become involved in athletics they should consider sustainable sports. (American) Football isn't something that you can do your whole life. When are you going to have a whole bunch of pads, 22 people and a field? It pretty much ends for 95% of people after high school and then those people get fat and unhealthy. I honestly think that soccer is a big factor why Europe is in better shape than America. (Aside from the obvious diet reasons as well.)

[Ryantology]

As much as I love sports, there is a point where we should promote academia first and if you want to encourage your children to become involved in athletics they should consider sustainable sports. (American) Football isn't something that you can do your whole life. When are you going to have a whole bunch of pads, 22 people and a field? It pretty much ends for 95% of people after high school and then those people get fat and unhealthy. I honestly think that soccer is a big factor why Europe is in better shape than America. (Aside from the obvious diet reasons as well.)

I don't really like the idea of athletic (read: not fitness) programs in schools. The salary of a university's coaching staffs alone could pay for a great many scholarships for people who are attempting to become something more important to the world than highly-paid entertainers.