Super Bowl football Broncos Seahawks yay rah rah. I spent the game at rehearsal and playing the online version of Cards Against Humanity. I've never been a huge fan of football in general; I only know as much as I do from four years of high school marching band and a gym teacher who was more forgiving to the less athletic among us and gave us comprehension quizzes rather than grading by ability. What I do know is that people care way too much about it (i.e. our HS football team got new jerseys every year while the softball team had to buy their own med kits for crying out loud), and that it is a lot more dangerous than people like to think.
I think it's a false sense of security. Before you even leave the locker room, you drown yourself in "protective" padding, and then you put a big bowl around your head with only enough holes to see through and barely hear through. Because of these extra layers, players think they can ram into each other like bumper cars because they're "protected," yet we're seeing more injuries and deaths related to neurological trauma. Sure, going full-force into another person without the gear would do a lot more damage, but it's not going to protect you from everything.
Finally, the NFL is starting to recognize that hey, concussions and traumatic brain injuries are a real problem. The NFL Head, Neck, and Spine Committee have been working not only to make the game safer but also to spread awareness of the dangers of these injuries. These have included informational posters in middle- and high schools, sideline neurologists, and advocating for a "when in doubt, sit them out"-type law in youth football that has passed in every state but Mississippi. The committee is also working to raise awareness for concussions in all activities using football as a role model of sorts.
Unfortunately, it has taken a multimillion-dollar lawsuit from former players and the deaths of others to bring this to the limelight, but the sooner they deal with this, the better.
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