The future of the NFL is in danger, and it is at risk of losing its position as the most favored sport throughout America. Many adolescents are leaving the game as the number of injuries is drastically increasing. Dr. Robert Cantu, a clinical professor of neurosurgery at the Boston University School of Medicine, stated that “Two publications out of Boston University show if you start [suffering] head trauma in football prior to age of 12, you are at greater risk in later life for cognitive and emotional issues” (Karaim 7). This displays how the number of children playing football is going to affect the future of the sport due to the high risk of long-term health issues that are causing many children to stop playing. Many parents of children …show more content…
This portrays how the game of football is going to lose a large portion of the youth as their future is at risk every time they play. The only way to put an end to the violence and injuries is to make the game safer, which has many effects on the sport and its future. The way of the game has changed for the youth, ranging from elementary school kids all the way to college players. There has been an effort put in to make the game safer in order to protect children from injuries. However, although new safety rules have been implemented, the risk of injury for children is still very high, causing a variety of parents to continue to keep their children away from the game. Although the game may be getting safer, the possibilities for concussions and other dangerous injuries still stand. The immense number of families making the decision to not have their children participate in the …show more content…
According to Richard Crepeau, a sports historian at the University of Central Florida, “You can make the game safer, but at some point to make it safer you’re going to have to make it less violent. And the question is where the balance is - when you make it less violent, what’s the tipping point at which fans lose some interest?” (Karaim 4). This quote displays how the game of football is being adjusted with new rules, and many fans will begin to lose interest in the sport as the game is changing. Football is in danger as the sport will begin to lose popularity if the violence, the excitement of the game, is taken away. Carolina Panthers’ player, Charles Tillman, expressed that the new safety rules of the sport are “ruining the integrity of the game. It’s not even football anymore. [They] should just go out there and play two-hand touch Sunday if [they] can’t make contact” (4). This quote demonstrates how many NFL players are becoming frustrated with the new style of football that is less violent and has been changed to prevent injury. Football players feel that the game is no longer the same game they have always played, causing a loss of interest from the players, and putting the most favored sport in danger. Some may say that the NFL has made the game safer, and it isn’t majorly changing the game as many people are still
America’s newfound favorite pastime, football, came from a bizarre chain of events. Football started when a soccer player got fed up with just kicking the ball, so he picked up the ball and ran to the goal. His actions of picking up the ball and running with it fathered a new European sport, rugby, which was soon brought over to American shores, and was altered slightly, the shape of the ball and a few other small rules. The sport became organized into a league and produced the NFL(National Football League). The NFL had a slow beginning, but has picked up popularity, currently having a 9 billion dollar yearly revenue. Playing football comes with great costs, including physical and mental health deterioration, plus the amount of time spent prepping before game day. Which can pose several questions, “Why suffer for a game, Is it worth the money? Is it worth the fame? How great is the cost?” I believe that football, should have stricter regulations for the treatment of injuries, along with informing players of just how devastating a concussion can be, along with the other major injuries that commonly occur while playing football.
In the article “Should Kids Play Football” from the Scholastic Scope on February 2015, writer Jennifer Shotz discusses both issues of the benefits and dangers of playing American football. For example, Jennifer Shots mentioned that tens of thousands of young football players get concussions every year. She states that most players return to the game after they are healed but some never return because their concussion was too severe to their health. On the other hand, the writer also discusses how football isn't the only sport that encounters concussions. The rules of football are always changing and each new rule provides a safer way to play the game. For example, the writer notes that Pop Warner has reduced the amount of practice time dedicated
Playing football comes with several risks factors that players’ acknowledge prior to playing the game starting a young age. Regardless, these players still chose to play the game, which they end up loving and cherishing despite all the risks accompanied with it. Football is one of the toughest sports in the world; it takes a certain amount of strength, speed, and aggressiveness to play 48 minutes of hard-nosed football. However, the National Football League (NFL) is in the midst of a controversial issue. Is the NFL getting soft? This has been a debatable issue for several years. While some believe that implementing all these rules in the NFL is progressively turning the game soft, others say that the NFL is not getting soft; it is just trying to make the game safer for its players.
Are young children putting their health and even their lives at risk if they partake in the sport of football? Some claim that the American sport is far too dangerous and the risk of concussions and injuries far outway the pros of the physical sport, while others insist that technological improvements and new regulations have made the sport safer. Jonathan Zimmerman, a professor of history and education at New York University, argues in his paper, “We Must Stop Risking the Health of Young Football Players,” that football is a sport that is too dangerous for the youth. He states his belief that technological improvements in helmets and changes in the rules of the sport have had little effect on reducing injuries and that nothing has worked.
In Daniel Flynn’s essay “Football Does a Body Good,” he states his point of view on football and the way people should see it. Football is a dangerous sport that has caused many types of head injuries concussions and other health problems throughout the years. This popular sport has caused many players to develop diseases later on in life, such as Chronic Traumatic Encephalopathy, also known as CTE, Alzheimer 's, and Dementia. One of the NFL’s most pressing issues is concussions, which can have life-changing health effects on the football players.
“Concussion rates for children under the age of 19 who play football have doubled in the last decade, even though the overall sports participation has declined” (Youth Football Concussion Statistics). Football is extremely popular in American culture. Children all across the world love watching and playing the sport. However, many studies have shown numerous possible long term effects of starting the beloved sport when young. Undeveloped brains have a harder time recovering from bumps and blows that occur during playing time. After examining the long term effects of children playing football, it is clear that the tradition of tackle football in youth should be held off until the brain is more fully developed,
Children who are active recklessly engage in activities where injuries can occur. Nobody can predict when or how seriously anybody will get injured during an activity, however, the risks of children playing tackle football is prevalent where the dangers are imminent. The game of tackle football on a youth level is dangerous for children since they are developing physically and mentally. According to an article from The Atlantic, “America’s most dangerous football is in the peewee leagues, not the National Football League” (Barra, 2013). According to a journal article, “sports injuries account for approximately 23% of pediatric emergency department injury related visits” (Podberesky, Unsell & Anton, 2009). “Of these sports injury-related
Football is an extremely violent game not only in the physical part but also in the mental part of the game. Players are coach to be vicious on the field. they are taught to get mad and take their aggression out on the other player. Which can be dangerous when two or more players are trying to hurt(intentionally or not) the other player by hitting them hard. High school sports are dangerous because rese...
American Football is a huge spectator sport where offensive and defensive players will use teamwork and perseverance to try and score more points than their opponent. Football is highly respected in America, where boys will try and pursue the dream of playing in the NFL (National Football Association) someday; but if you look at an average neighborhood, you will find that kids and adults of all ages love to go out and throw around the pigskin. (Lerner and Lerner 275). One thing Americans will take pride in is the college and NFL football teams they root for. People sit down with a beer and talk hours upon hours of football and two individuals can get in a heated discussion in the local sports store of whose sports team is better.
“Maybe I´m stupid or whatever, but to me if I got a concussion, if I could see straight and carry a football, then I´m not telling anybody”, Ricky Williams, NFL Football player. The argument about whether kids should play football or not is an important topic to argue. People need to understand that the concussions and other injuries are more serious with young kids. The problem is that many people think that it could be stopped by not allowing kids to play at all. Although parents can reduce risk of injury by not allowing their kids to play football, parents should let their children play football because it lets kids follow their dreams, it helps kids become more mature and independant, and if kids use proper technique they can reduce injuries.
Not only do we know the effects of playing football at a young age, we also have real life stories that have occured to real people. For example, In 2006 a 13 year old named Zachary Lystatdt’s head hit the ground in a routine tackle. He was in pain, so the coach took him out of the game for two plays. He returned to the game and on the last play he collapsed. Zachary was rushed to the hospital and was required to have emergency neurosurgery. After this life changing surgery, 9 months later he was finally able to communicate. Now, he is still learning how to walk (Hamblin, James. “Football Alters the Brains of Kids as Young as 8.”)This story sets an example of why children should not be able to play contact sports until adulthood. Unfortunately, this is not the only sad story about a child who has had life changing effects from playing
Since football’s inception, it has been considered a manly sport. Young boys have been encouraged by their parents to participate in the game. For many boys, it is considered a rite of passage. However, football is a dangerous sport. A study conducted by the Center for Injury Research and Policy found, “an estimated 5.25 million football-related injuries among children and adolescents between 6 and 17 years of age were treated in U.S. emergency departments between 1990 and 2007. The annual number of football-related injuries increased 27 percent during the 18-year study period, jumping from 274,094 in 1990 to 346,772 in 2007” (Nation 201). These reported injuries include sprains and strains, broken bones, cracked ribs, torn ligaments, and concussions. A concussion usually happens when a player takes a hard hit to the head or is knocked unconscious on the playing field, and if not diagnosed and treated quickly, a concussion can result in death.
There are many things in life that have their unique differences. Every level of Football has its 's differences, but there are some differences that matter the most. Different things have to be done from the high school level to the college level, and to the national level of football. There are different requirements needed in a players ' arsenal to develop a certain football leveled skill-set. This essay is about the difference between the high school football level and the professional football level. Some of these differences have to do with safety and protection of players.
In America, football is no longer a sport but is engraved into our culture. According to SoftSchools.com, a website containing informative information on multiple subjects, The National Football League was established in 1920, quickly becoming the most watched sports league in the U.S. (“Football”). The league is composed of thirty-two teams, competing each year with the intent to play in the Super Bowl for a chance to win the Vince Lombardi Trophy (“Football”). The Super Bowl is the most watched television program in the U.S., averaging 113 million viewers each year (“Football”). With so many people watching this sport the annual revenue of the NFL is approximately nine billion dollars (“Football”). In contrast, baseball is considered to be the American sport, however, the annual revenue is only 7.2 billion dollars (“Football”). Football has now passed many sports in popularity in the United States being the favorite of thirty-five percent of all Americans (“Football”). The sport is appealing to many because the physical aspect to the game is exhilarating and keeps the fans entertained. However, the physical nature of the sport may cause the popularity but also can make the game dangerous.
Football may in fact be a worldwide fad, but when will people ever realize that the lasting affects that football leaves on people is a dangerous thing? Nothing about the game of football will ever make up for the lifelong negative realities that come with playing the dangerous sport. Unfortunately, people do not seem to care about those negative things, because the love of football is unconditional. Will football ever be safe? Even though that question may never be answered, and the problems with football may never be solved, people will still continue to love and play the game, regardless of what may come. The only hope is that something will happen, and the excessive injury, trauma, and death will come to a complete halt.