GRIDIRON GLADIATORS NO MORE--PLEASE!

  Carolyn's Corner

Many people in the world of sports have been anxiously awaiting the new movie "Concussion," starring Will Smith, to see how far it goes in shedding light on the NFL's #1 problem, by all accounts, of repeated concussions suffered in games. 

courtesy of santabanta.com

As everyone now knows, the seriousness is that that concussions can ultimately cause CTE (Chronic Traumatic Encephalopathy), a form of Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI), which can then become the cause of death years later.  Witness Junior Seau, Mike Webster, and countless other documented cases.

So an interesting question is:  Will Roger Goodell, Commissioner of the NFL, go to see the movie?  

If he will, he has not said publicly, but he certainly is trying to avoid commenting on it, according to Justin Tasch in the New York Daily News.  Tasch reports that in an interview on Sirius Radio, Shannon Sharpe (Hall of Fame tight end) asked Goodell directly if he would.  However, Goodell did not seem to want to go down that road but was instead eager to defend what the league has already done in terms of preventing concussions.
  
While, in all fairness, he did say that there is much further to go, he quickly referred to changes that have been made to equipment and artificial turf over the past several years. He pointed out that there have been changes in the construction of helmets as well as additional padding adding below the turf to mitigate injury when a player makes contact with the ground.  There have also been over 39 rule changes over the last 10 years to make the game safer, he claimed.  He cited that there has been a decrease of 35% in the number of concussions, although the time frame he was using was not made clear.

Tasch found that claim interesting, given that the group that made the documentary "League of Denial," which was widely seen on "Frontline" on PBS, has continued to accumulate statistics with regard to concussions since 2012, when their research began for the program which aired in 2013.  This year, for example, they have already recorded 140 concussions by Week 13 of the 2015 season, which puts the numbers on track statistically for 183, the highest since the group began independently counting.

It is indeed curious that the 2 sets of statistics-- the NFL's and the documentary's-- are at such odds.

Goodell went on to say that the concussion protocol has been strengthened with the addition of ATC (certified athletic trainer) spotters and independent neurologists--apart from team doctors.  This clearly is to the league's credit.  

However, in the now infamous case of Case Keenum, the Rams QB, the protocol failed miserably  in a game against the Ravens.  Keenum's head smashed the ground, and he was woozy and slow to get up--clear indicators to suspect concussion. 

    

picutures courtesy of NBC News, ESPN, and Yahoo Sports

Nevertheless, due to a "confusing" chain of events, Keenum was only cursorily looked at on the field by someone not indicated in the protocol and allowed to continue to play. Only after the game ended was he was diagnosed with a concussion.  If it was clear to the commentators in the booth that something was wrong and the images were shown repeatedly on replay, implying it was seen by virtually everyone on the big screen in the stadium, why was the protocol not immediately initiated?  Where were the ATC spotter and independent neurologist?  Even better, where were the coach, the team doctor and/or team trainer and why didn't they call for someone, anyone to respond?  

No one essentially did anything?  Really?  Wow!  A kindergartner on the school playground has sense enough to go get a teacher when he sees someone fall and hit her head hard. And the teacher will certainly take the child to see the nurse.  And the nurse is required to call the parents, the child's doctor, and even 911 if the evidence is compelling.  And so on.  

A breakdown in such simple steps on the NFL playing field indicates either extremely poor communication of the protocol to all concerned or virtual disregard for the protocol, which amounts to legal negligence.  That is concerning.  

Moreover, as is blatantly obvious, this wasn't just a bad call by an official that affects a game. This was a bad call that affects a player's life.  A human life.

Maybe it is time to forget the idea that football players are tough and invincible gridiron gladiators because, after all, the gladiators in ancient Rome did fight to the death--and that is asking just a little too much to ask in today's supposedly modern world.

jpeg - searchpp.com

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