CTE The Dark Side of Football

[BamaFan6462]

HBO had a show about CTE a few years ago that featured Kevin Turner. I had read about CTE prior to watching it, but this was the first time I saw how bad off Turner really was. To say it was difficult to watch is an understatement. I know one of the problems in the past was players returning before they were given an opportunity to heal, so hopefully concussion protocol is the answer to the problem. In the meantime, if I had a son interested in playing sports I’d be strong suggesting baseball over football.

 

[Elefantman]

Jalen Hurts had to go into the CP during the Washington game three weeks ago. He just returned to practice two days ago. Hopefully he is healthy and won't experience any negative effects later in life. The hit he took didn't look bad and I was surprised they pulled him from the game.

 

[mdb-tpet]

Not if I'm tee-ing off in your direction...

You must have been the guy on the T-box when my and my family were hiking on a nature path that was cut in two by a golf course who's drive missed my 7 year old by about 20 ft.

 

[Tideflyer]

75% of the former football player brains studied show CTE. But they only study the brains of players who were suspected of having CTE, so we really have no idea what the percentage might be across the entire pool.

There is always a price to be paid for playing such a brutal sport. I have dealt with shoulder pain my entire life, which started with an injury playing HS football.

I did not know that Bo Jackson said that he never would have played football if he had known the CTE risks. Of course, he was also a special baseball player, so I am guessing that he meant that he would have just taken that route.

I wonder what the CTE incident rates are for soccer players. They also experience a great deal of head trauma.

It’s a game that is incompatible with the structure of the human body. I had a buddy in high school who took his life a number of years later and I have wondered if CTE may have played a role.

 

[Tide Rev]

I played basketball from 4th grade until my freshman year of college basketball. I blew my right knee out my freshman year and had to stop playing after 2 surgeries. At age 63 now, my knees are not in bad shape. I have had 2 more knee surgeries in my adult years. But my knees sound like Rice Krispies each morning (snap, crackle and pop) and it takes me about 15 minutes before I can get around without limping. Have had the right rotator cuff repaired (because of tennis). Honestly, I’m in pretty good shape and have no regrets. Only thing I would do differently if I had the chance to do it again, I would stretch and loosen up before practicing and/or playing.