This is your brain on football...
by Pola-Gona-Maul-U on Oct 12, 2009 3:02 PM EDT
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PrintBumped from the fanposts. Good stuff. And as a follow up, read Malcolm Gladwell's latest piece in the New Yorker titled 'How different are football and dogfighting?' Excellent, interesting stuff as well. Thanks to pola-gona-maul-u for the contribution. -Blitz- (Michael B.)
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Here you will find an excellent GQ article titled "Game Brain" about the dangers of concussions suffered by NFL players. According to the article, which is written by Jean Marie Laskas (she was my professor for two of my writing courses at Pitt), offensive linemen seem to be at the highest risk for a disease now diagnosed as CTE. The unfortunate part is that the NFL is refuting the science being brought before them. They are dismissing it as if it were inconclusive opinionated fluff rather than the autopsy of former NFL players' brains.
It is believed that these repeated concussions can lead former players to dementia, memory loss and Alzheimer-like symptoms.
The solution, according to one of the scientists quoted in the article, is not helmets. He says,
Helmets are not the answer. The brain has a certain amount of play inside the skull. It’s buoyed up in the cerebral spinal fluid. It sits in this fluid, floats. When the head suddenly stops, the brain continues, reverberates back. So when I hit, boom, my skull stops, but my brain continues forward for about a centimeter. Boom, boom, it reverberates back. So you could have padding that’s a foot thick. It’s not going to change the acceleration/deceleration phenomenon. And a lot of these injuries are rotational. The fibers get torn with rotation. You’ve got a face mask that’s like a fulcrum sitting out here: You get hit, your head swings around. That’s when a lot of these fibers are sheared—by rotation. A helmet can’t ever prevent that.
In fact, the article even argues that helmets have potentially made the game more dangerous because it makes players fearless to lead with their heads.
Suddenly I don't feel so bad about some of the "ballerina" rules that the NFL is taking up to protect players.
As a football fan, I know the intensity and excitement of the game suffers with more and more rules diminishing the "machismo" of the sport, but at the end of the day we're dealing with real people's lives here.
In any case, please read the article. It's excellent.
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I am going to read this article as soon as I can...
This is the dirty little secret of the NFL, they know this stuff happens but they won’t admit it. As soon as I find a few free minutes from this job-o-mine, I’ll read both links.
I don’t want to steal your thunder, but along the same lines I have been reading, and I suggest everyone should read, the Player X columns in ESPN Magazine. The newest is Currency of Pain (if you’re not an insider, don’t bother checking the link). Here is a very brief quote:
Fans don’t understand the long-term effects of those collisions. I know guys who can’t wear a wedding ring because the band won’t fit over their busted-up finger. I’ve seen guys so arthritic they can barely move; linemen who can no longer pick up their kids; ex-running backs with lingering concussion headaches.
After some particularly large hits, I always think about the men behind the facemask and pads, and how these hits effect them. In the very same issue of the mag, there is a picture of Tory Holt’s hand. Look at that hand, and think about it for a minute. That’s one man’s hand. Think about the rest of the guys out there, and what their whole bodies go through, it should make you respect all of them a little bit more than we all already do.
This kind of stuff makes you think. Thanks for the links, hopefully mine is of some interest as well.
disgraceful
Thanks for posting the GQ.
American industries have such a poor, poor track record in regards to employee health. Almost any job where worker health and safety is a problem or potential problem goes unanswered, and it is not until many lives are irreparably damaged, or lost, that employee safety becomes an issue.
Even then the industry continues to refute science and deflect any blame or responsibility.
We want the nfl to be different, we want to idealize the institution. It is easy to see the dangers in the violent collisions or actions that bring tremendous harm in that moment.
It is more difficult to see the lasting effects, and the internal effects, that manifest themselves after the game ends.
The commissioner needs to take a hold of this issue. Rule changes are not the only answer. If the equipment needs to be completely broken down and reanalyzed, throwing out years of conventional wisdom, so be it.
But in the meantime, the NFL has to accept responsibility for the health of it’s retired employees and work with the science of injury, not against it.
Gladwell's
is good too, minus the absurd comparison to dogfighting.
I dont think its absurd
while i agree theres no real gashing and gnawing and chewing-obviously- the analogy is more along the lines of respect.
dogs dont get respect, they dont really get a say. the same for players. if they dont tough it out they dont play they dont have a career. its tacit, its not in the rules, the rules say if you’re hurt you dont play , get help etc…but thats not how it works. gladwell is referencing those issues…not really the physical aspects even though both are painful and can lead to very very severe trauma-in this case premature death and extreme pain.
It's absurd.
A dog doesn’t choose to go into the ring, but a player choose to step onto the field. And violence is a by-product of football, and the purpose of dogfighting.
Presumably the editors didn’t care for his original proposal, so he spiced up it with some topical, irrelevant material – Michael Vick is always good for driving traffic.
Violence
I agree with Surag.
Football and dog-fighting are obviously very different, but the analogy can still be useful. It helps us look more deeply at the various ways our society chooses to sanction violence.
As the article points out, a hundred years ago dog fighting was a popular sport. It remains a popular sport in certain sub-cultures. But something changed as well. The great majority of our society can no longer stomach the idea of seeing two dogs kill each other. It seems cruel and unnecessary.
When we look back a hundred years from now, I have no doubt that certain things that we take for granted will seem needlessly cruel. I imagine the meat industry as it currently operates will be one of them. I don’t believe football (or violent sport in general) will be – however I think that the current levels of injury in football will be seen as unacceptable.
Many people like many dogs are willing to risk their lives in battle. Many people are willing to significantly shorten their lives, endure tremendous pain, take drugs that may kill them in the long run – just for the chance to play the sport a little bit better. As fans, we do have some responsibility for pushing the NFL to take player safety seriously.
It is natural that the NFL seems to be more concerned with torn tendons for it’s star players (the kind of injuries that cost them revenue) than with the long term effects the game that are seen mostly after players leave the field. Articles like this help shift the focus back on the more serious but less visible costs of the game.
by SteelerBuddha on Oct 13, 2009 10:31 AM EDT up reply actions 1 recs
The FSN sports science show
studied football and rugby tackles, and found that the former is about twice as forceful. They theorized, like this article, that the extra protection football players wear actually encourages them to be more violent by giving them a false sense of invulnerability. I’ve played tackle football without pads, and minus one or two halfwits, nobody even thinks of putting his shoulder into another guy, or slamming him to the ground.
caught that...
I think i remember watching that episode— you’re right
When faith in God and love for the Steelers collide...
http://michelsauret.blogspot.com
by Pola-Gona-Maul-U on Oct 12, 2009 5:33 PM EDT up reply actions
Great article, I’m glad I read it. I’ve heard before that a few players (Merriman, Sean Morrey) already donated their bodies for postmortem research.
I doubt that the NFL will take the lead and address these issues head on (sorry). I’ve lost some faith after Spygate, so I’d be surprised if the NFL takes the moral high ground here.
Wow
Great article indeed. I think of a beautiful human being like Troy suffering such an awful fate and it makes me angry at the NFL for resisting progress in in this field. These young men give their lives to play football, they should not be dying in such intolerable conditions. The stories of the old players dying alone and destitute is highly disturbing. Shame on the NFL for discarding these great men who helped to build the sport and bring the NFL untold riches.
The NFL should not be allowed to treat their former players this way. Maybe public outcry from the millions of fans will help to get their attention.
So I say thank you for bringing this insightful information to our attention; I hope everyone reads this. My thoughts and prayers to all the affected players and their famillies and god bless and healthy lives to all the young men putting their lives on the line every week.
the amount of aggragance on the part of the NFL is appaling
they think we’re the NFL and we can do what we want when we want and totally disregard the science behind this
"Polamalu’s lineage can be traced through several roots. Chuck Norris mated with an Amazon Queen, and on the other side, Tony Hawk mated with Mother Nature.
The two children of these spawned and fused in a tantric love session to create Troy Polamalu. The mother however died as he tore through the birth canal with a spin move."
Mechem on the roots of Troy Polamalu
I can't spell but you get the point
"Polamalu’s lineage can be traced through several roots. Chuck Norris mated with an Amazon Queen, and on the other side, Tony Hawk mated with Mother Nature.
The two children of these spawned and fused in a tantric love session to create Troy Polamalu. The mother however died as he tore through the birth canal with a spin move."
Mechem on the roots of Troy Polamalu
by WVPiratesfan on Oct 12, 2009 9:38 PM EDT up reply actions
Actually the US probably has the best standards for protecting it's workers in the world.
Also thicker padding would help because it would cause the head to decellerate slower which would help, see air bags in cars.
The NFL has (The Steelers Doctors specifically) some of the best people in the world working and studing this problem.
All that being said, it’s a shame that a sport so fantastic to watch and play (and that makes so much money), is so detrimental to it’s participants. The next collective barganing deal hopefully will do something for it’s ex players. Which won’t fix the problem but can’t hurt long term.
sorry you're WRONG.
actually thicker padding wont help…did you even read the above article in GQ or did you just post rubbish? because thats what im seeing.
thicker padding wont remove the acceleration and decceleration which is what causes tearing in the brain as it bounces around the skull.
even so, the padding and helmets as theorized above allow players to assume they are protected and play even more violently.
collective bargaining deal? are you paying attention to whats going on? the next collective bargaining-oh wait it wont really happen.
Yeah, they specifically mentioned this.
Sorry, but you can’t pad the inside of a player’s skull. It’s the centimeter between the brain and the skull that causes the problem – jarring impacts force the brain to slam from side to side. A better helmet can’t stop that.
Not wrong
If you put a pillow on your head and crash into a wall your head decellerates slower than without the pillow, and since your brain is in your head it decellerates slower also, still hits the skull but slower which = less damage.
I was commenting on the post not the artical.
I thought the word “hopefully” would cover the next CBA, oh wait it did.
Mike Webster
Was my hero growing up. I lifted weights daily from the age of 12 through high school to try to achieve “Webster arms”. I really worshipped the guy and reading this article moved me to tears as I imagined Mike on that slab during his autopsy.
What a tragic end. to his life. Maybe his death will cause the NFL to address this issue.
My guess is that as long as money is being made, little will be done.
by DwightWhite's Missing Tooth on Oct 12, 2009 6:51 PM EDT via mobile reply actions
Webster
Unfortunately Webster was only the first NFL player of 12 so far that were autopsied by the medical examiner mentioned in the story. He sent out studies to a peer-reviewed journal based on what he found in Webster’s brain, and the NFL totally ignored it. What the article goes on to explore is very tragic.
Laskas does mention some improvements, but for the most part the NFL doctors are in denial.
When faith in God and love for the Steelers collide...
http://michelsauret.blogspot.com
by Pola-Gona-Maul-U on Oct 12, 2009 7:15 PM EDT up reply actions
Did you see the Ray Lewis hit yesterday on Ochostinko???
I’m no Ocho fan but nobody deserves to be mauled like that! Lewis should be suspended for the year! He’s a thug.
hits
Yeah I’m just like everybody else and I love watching those hits on TV— even the brutal hits are a sight… but then I read articles on the effects they have on the brain, and now I cringe
When faith in God and love for the Steelers collide...
http://michelsauret.blogspot.com
by Pola-Gona-Maul-U on Oct 12, 2009 7:16 PM EDT up reply actions
Agreed Billy52
Re: Lewis being a thug, but if we replace the name James Harrison for Ray Lewis, would we still feel the same way about that hit on Ochocinco? That’s the razor’s edge of football, and we as fans eat it up (see Pola-Gona-Maul-U’s comments below, which are true as well).
Also, when I first began to read this post, my first thought was Mike Webster, even before I saw the other comments. No one, especially him, deserved this fate. The NFL has to acknowledge and address the long term effects of playing this game and those who made this league what it is today.
good stuff
although my screen name makes me feel like a hypocrite…
"Now that I'm here, I don't want to just be here, I want to be here for a long time." Hines Ward, 1998 4th round draft pick.
by kick him in the head on Oct 12, 2009 11:09 PM EDT reply actions
does take the edge off
but not as fun to yell…damn I love football season
"Now that I'm here, I don't want to just be here, I want to be here for a long time." Hines Ward, 1998 4th round draft pick.
by kick him in the head on Oct 13, 2009 12:35 AM EDT up reply actions
Remember Coliseum?
Since the ancient history, mankind enjoys the brutal sports. And sportsmen as such become celebrities and make money. Remember Coliseum? Gladiators fought their and gave up their lives. Some even became celebrities even in those times in anciant Rome and Greece.
I assume that all adults are reasonable human beings and as such we understand what kind of activities endabger our health. To say — that sportsmen, especially professional boxers, football players, hockey players, cowboys (those dudes trying to ride bulls) don’t understand that they are damaging their health in long run – is absurd.
Spectators enjoy brutal sports. People pay money for their seats. Sportsmen make millions of dollars for their risks. Everything is quite fair.
P.S. By the way, professional boxers have more to be afraid of than american football players. Do you think we need to stop BOX as a sport?
Agree
It’s part of the reason they are respected the way they are. It’s why we watch. Not to see them get hurt, but to see them take shots that us normal folks can’t. And then come back for more. Perfect current example is Brady’s (insert adjective) play of late. He’s losing respect cause the man whines about taking “hits” my grandma could take.
I do think the NFL should have SOME accountability, of coarse. Not a stat guy, but I’m sure they make enough off us, that they can fork up some R&D $$$ to protect our heroes.
In the end, these athletes are compensated for the risks they take. Whether they choose to ignore the signs of wear and tear to their bodies, is up to them.
"Now that I'm here, I don't want to just be here, I want to be here for a long time." Hines Ward, 1998 4th round draft pick.
by kick him in the head on Oct 13, 2009 1:01 AM EDT up reply actions
money talks
the only way this will be changed is if enough fans went cold turkey that the NFL felt it in the pocketbook. That would mean: don’t buy jerseys, game tickets, caps, don’t support advertisers, etc. In addition, trying to fix the problem would probably require drastic rule changes that would change the game significantly… There are definitely no easy answers to this one. I do believe that NFL players sign up for the aches and pains of the game – however, severe brain damage and early onset dementia are not part of that package… At the very least, the NFL needs to take care of its former players, and give them the benefit of the doubt as to whether medical conditions are football-related or not.
It shouldn't matter if any conditions are related to football...
it’s basic @# humanity that we lack these days. Just about every other country on earth has recognized health as a right, not a privilege. It is something we should all have: FULL access to any care we need. And those ex players are going to need a lot of help in the later years. We owe these guys- they sacrificed much so that we can drink beer and call them chumps on TV. :/
Rights are something that shouldn’t be taken away from someone, not given to someone at someone else’s expense.. Rights impose no obligations on other people, entitlements do.
Not true...
All rights come with responsibilities, and some of the responsibilities do come at the expense of others.
by NYSteelersFan4 on Oct 13, 2009 10:47 AM EDT up reply actions
Every right comes with the responsibility to protect them....
Every right we have as Americans came at the expense of every soldier who has died for our country.
by NYSteelersFan4 on Oct 13, 2009 11:20 AM EDT up reply actions
I should have stuck to football, analogies aren't my thing, but...
The players deserve the right to be healthy, and the league has the responsibility to do everything they can for the players, which they do not. This is at the expense of players who live daily with the pains the game brought to them, some of whom cannot provide much more for themselves then what they earn signing memorabilia.
They paved the way for the game as it is now, and some aren’t even paid the courtesy of a comped doctor’s visit for their troubles.
by NYSteelersFan4 on Oct 13, 2009 11:29 AM EDT up reply actions
While I agree.....
that the NFL should help it’s former players, and that it would be the noble thing to do, they are not obligated to do so, because it is not a RIGHT of the player to be healthy. The reason it is not a right is because it would come at the expense of others.
We only have a right to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness, as well as the items in the Bill of Rights, and none of those rights requires anything from anyone other than the individual exercising their rights.
Rant off :)
I hear you...
But we all have the right to life, as you said, but what good is the right to life, if your life is nothing more than sickness or suffering?
The expense of certain things is not as important as the moral belief in a good life being a healthy one.
And your use of should in the previous response is correct, they should, they don’t have to. But a good person or persons recognizes the benefits they’ve received as a result of the sacrifices made by others, and should be willing to help them out in return.
by NYSteelersFan4 on Oct 13, 2009 1:21 PM EDT up reply actions
“The expense of certain things is not as important as the moral belief in a good life being a healthy one.”
Maybe not to you, maybe not to me, but moral justification does not a right make ; )
Understandable...
I suppose you’re right. And I think we’ve ventured into grounds beyond football, and I’ll take responsiblitty for that I guess. So as good as the discussion we’ve had has been, perhaps we should let it go at this point. Always good getting another point of view though, thanks.
by NYSteelersFan4 on Oct 13, 2009 2:02 PM EDT up reply actions
Agreed....
And it’s been a pleasure discussing with you but…
Let’s get back to Steelers football!
Freedom costs a buck 'o five
The only managing Ben does is he manages to WIN games
by chewiesteeler on Oct 13, 2009 2:06 PM EDT up reply actions
Freedom ain't worth nothing but it's free
by SteelerBuddha on Oct 13, 2009 2:46 PM EDT up reply actions
Freedom isn't free
It costs a hefty fu*^in fee
And if you don’t pay your buck ’o five
who will?
The only managing Ben does is he manages to WIN games
by chewiesteeler on Oct 13, 2009 3:05 PM EDT up reply actions
got change for a 5?
"A pessimist sees the difficulty in every opportunity; an optimist sees the opportunity in every difficulty." - Winston Churchill
You want
3 singles, 3 quarters and two dimes? You want 395 pennies? You want 79 nickels? I can help.
The only managing Ben does is he manages to WIN games
by chewiesteeler on Oct 13, 2009 3:20 PM EDT up reply actions
just 3 dollas keep the change
as a matter of fact keep all of it and let in cover a few more.
"A pessimist sees the difficulty in every opportunity; an optimist sees the opportunity in every difficulty." - Winston Churchill
dang you don't miss much huh? :)
"A pessimist sees the difficulty in every opportunity; an optimist sees the opportunity in every difficulty." - Winston Churchill
Team America
nice
"Now that I'm here, I don't want to just be here, I want to be here for a long time." Hines Ward, 1998 4th round draft pick.
by kick him in the head on Oct 13, 2009 7:41 PM EDT up reply actions
durka durka
"A pessimist sees the difficulty in every opportunity; an optimist sees the opportunity in every difficulty." - Winston Churchill
It's up to the players
The only rights these players can be sure of having are the rights they negotiate for themselves in a collective agreement. This was a great story on Mike Webster if somewhat simplistic and over-dramatic in its good guys vs. bad guys scenario. What’s missing from from the story is the perspective of the NFLPA. That is the group that should be most interested in the research done on brain injuries and the group that is obligated to protect its members and advocate better conditions and health benefits. Why wasn’t the NFLPA front and center, carrying the banner for one of its fallen heroes? The answer is that most current athletes in all professional team sports, and the unions that represent them, don’t give a shit about retired players. That to me is the saddest part of this story. Obviously the NFL should be embracing any advances in concussion research, but the first step is for the players to make it an issue. It’s their health that’s at stake.
by steeler.lifer on Oct 21, 2009 3:13 AM EDT up reply actions
why not?
he played well i thought
Ron Paul was Right.
by Steelchamps !! on Oct 15, 2009 2:23 AM EDT up reply actions
Yeah, I guess
Though I didn’t even see Ben as a candidate. I guess 3 tds, almost 300 yds and nearly 77% completion percentage doesn’t warrant consideration. WTF, over?
The only managing Ben does is he manages to WIN games
by chewiesteeler on Oct 15, 2009 3:24 PM EDT up reply actions
lions
? just athought. Orton had Pats
Ron Paul was Right.
by Steelchamps !! on Oct 16, 2009 4:25 PM EDT up reply actions
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