Recent developments by leading neurologists have linked to concussions from football to irreversible, traumatic brain disease. Chronic Traumatic …show more content…
Amid the twenty plus documented cases of CTE among NFL players, Dave Duerson and Junior Seau are two former NFL players who shot themselves dead. They were both less than fifty years old.
Although the two star athletes played the game in different eras, Duerson and Seau both suffered from similarly serious physical and mental health issues. Their health problems are believed to be a direct result from head trauma. In a suicide not left by Duerson, he wrote “Please, see that my brain is given to the N.F.L.’s brain bank” (Tragic C.T.E. Roll Call).Subsequently, “Boston University researchers found his brain had developed C.T.E.” (Tragic C.T.E. Roll Call). The suffering from this awful disease extends well beyond only the victims. Family members of players have been caught in the crossfire too. Many wives’ of the deceased, due to CTE, have come forth and expressed how their lives had changed for the worse because their loved ones became abusive and/or delusional. Moreover, symptoms like memory loss and bad impulse control created for volatile and unpleasant …show more content…
Therefore, I would be hard pressed to think that the NFL is going to make the necessary changes to safety regulations because it would change the attraction of the game dramatically and thus potentially losing a significant amount of fans and revenue.
This may come as a shock but I once was an avid NFL fan. The Forty Niners of the 1980’s and 1990’s were my team. I can relate to the entertainment value of the game. Admiring players perform dazzling maneuvers and tracking stats of favorite players is fun. I get it. Yet, over the last decade I have grown, allowing myself to understand the dangers and threats football players and their families face. Giving up something you enjoy is never easy but if the ultimate safety of another person’s life is at stake compromising should take precedence. The game has become deadly and significant changes need to made. Whether fans have to take it upon themselves to give up their support because the league keeps prevaricating on rule and equipment changes, or traumatized players and grief-stricken families bring forth more indisputable evidence that the NFL needs to make changes to make the game safer, the time is now before more players