Why Are We Dehumanize Football?

Football is a sport that is ingrained into American society. Across the United States, football is more than just a game, it is a representation of its followers’ values. In recent years, football has become increasingly criticized. A majority of this criticism arises from the high risk of head injuries while playing football. However, there is another sect of the population that criticizes football at its foundation. They claim that the game creates a barbaric and dehumanizing spectacle of violence. Supporters of football, on the other hand, argue that, without football, the values that America holds dear will cease to exist. This conflict is prominent in the landscape of the sporting world in modern America. Regardless of one’s position in the argument, there are serious

implications for both sides.
In recent years, strings of arrests have occurred with professional football players for violent offenses. The most prominent of which is the case of Ray Rice, a running back for the Baltimore Ravens, who assaulted his girlfriend in an elevator. The security footage of this crime was leaked and America became outraged. This created a national conversation about the inherent violence of football.

America wondered if its favorite game had become too aggressive. A study at Duke University analyzed the number of arrests for violent offenses in the NFL versus an extrapolation of the American population. This source titled Criminal Violence of NFL Players Compared to the General Population, will be used as background information. Alfred Blumstein and Jeff Benedict collected information on 509 NFL players as a sample population. The researchers then separated the population into the two most prominent racial groups, whites and blacks. This is because the rates of arrests for each race vary significantly. Using the FBI’s data resources, Benedict and Blumstein compared the ratios of NFL player arrests in each racial group to the number of arrests per racial group in the entire United States. According to the study, “NFL rates [of violent crime] are less than half of the general population rates for both whites and blacks” (Blumstein and Benedict 14). Another background source, entitled “Does Playing Football Make You Violent? Examining The Evidence”, also concluded that “It’s a myth that NFL players in general are prone to criminality; their overall arrest rates are actually much

lower than national averages” (Diamond). The conclusions of these sources have great implications in the discussion of the culture of football. The public may view the arrests of high profile NFL figures, such as Ray Rice, and make generalizations on the overall population of the NFL and, moreover, the culture promoted by football. While this information is highly consequential to the conversation regarding NFL players and violence, Blumstein and Benedict admit that their data is not perfect. They admit that flaws such as NFL players attracting more police attention may have skewed the arrest numbers, writing, “We have no insight on this issue, so we must take the arrests at face value” (15). Blumstein and Benedict’s research provides insight into the idea that football may not inherently promote violence. However, there are arguments in the conflict of the culture of football that report the contrary.
Regardless of the conclusions of Blumstein and Benedict’s research, there is clearly real concern over the culture of football in America. Mothers are not only worried about their sons injuring themselves, but also becoming more violent as they play the collision sport that is football. One of the most prominent voices in this discussion is former NFL linebacker Chris Borland. Borland was drafted in the third round by San Fransisco 49ers. As he began his career in the NFL, he became a valuable asset to the 49ers organization, making plays with his toughness and athletic ability. This is why the football world was shocked when Borland announced he would retire from football at the age of 24, after just one year in the league. In an interview with ESPN the Magazine’s Steve Fainaru and Mark Fainaru-Wada, Borland explained his decision. “Why former 49er Chris Borland is the most dangerous man in football” will be used for argumentative purposes, representing those who oppose the culture of football. In the article, Borland explains that his decision went beyond fear of injury. The authors write that Borland has “has come to view [football] as a dehumanizing spectacle that debases both the people who play it and the people who watch it” (Fainaru). This source is clearly representative of an anti-football voice. While it does have a slant, this article offers insight into the conflict over the culture of football. Borland uses a great deal of ethos in his argument, representing a voice that has experience in the violence of the game. This discussion is on the minds of all Americans. Late-night host Conan O’Brien even engaged in the conversation. In a recent tweet, he wrote, “My son wants to play football. I say he goes to prison now and cuts out the middle man” (O’Brien). This humorous exhibit source perhaps gives the most insight into the thoughts of those who oppose the culture of football. The people who are in this common situation fear not the physical injury of their loved ones, but more so the mental impact a violent sport. Other humorous exhibit sources promote the idea of an inherently violent NFL. For example, the satirical news website The Onion posted an article about NFL rookie quarterback Marcus Mariota. The article listed Mariota’s weaknesses included being “too polite” and having “a lack of off the field incidents” (Strongside). It is clear that these exhibit sources use humor to promote the stereotype of a violent culture in football. As the background source implicates, the anti-football argument is developed from generalizations made about all football players because of the high-profile nature of those recent arrests, not because of the high number of arrests compared to the general population.
As a larger sect of the population begins to believe similarly to Borland and O’Brien regarding the culture of football, many of those who love the game fear that football is under attack. One of those people is Baltimore Ravens Head Coach John Harbaugh. In his essay “Why Football Matters”, he argues that the values that football instills in American society outweigh the negatives of the sport. This text will be used as an additional argumentative source, representing the pro-football side of the discussion. The essay was written in response to the voices such as Chris Borland. Harbaugh argues that these opponents to football are looking at the game with the wrong perspective. He writes, “Football is a metaphor for life…the value of football is the values in football” (Harbaugh). Using both ethos and pathos, Harbaugh appeals to the hearts of the American people. He understands that making the game safer is the best thing for the game, writing “Change the rules. Take certain things out of the game. It’s all the right thing to do” (Harbaugh). While Borland and O’Brien look at football from a very black-and-white perspective, Harbaugh goes beyond that, arguing that the values of football change all of American society for the better. This is the clear distinction between both sides of the discussion. Those that follow Harbaugh’s perspective believe that there is a deeper meaning to the sport, while those like Borland believe that football is simply controlled violence for entertainment.
The conflict of football in America is extremely significant. Its popularity has never been higher, but neither has its criticism. The discussion over the culture of football represents a deeper trend in the modern American landscape. As the social atmosphere of the nation becomes more progressive and open, “the old way” is turning into “the new way.” The values of football are classically American and the conflict between these values is a true representation of this shift in the culture. There are millions of sons in America today asking their parents to be able to play football. The perspective of these parents’ in this conflict have massive implications for the future of this nation.