Nfl Concussions Essay

Carson Simpson Mrs. Gallos English 3 Honors 24 April 2017 Concussions in Football Although football is a very popular sport, changes need to be made. There is a lot of research and data showing head injuries in football and how they hurt the players. The NFL tries to just sweep these cases away because they know it would hurt the popularity and economical support of the sport. Head injuries and concussions are the most popular injuries in football because of the fact that they are one of the most dangerous injuries a player could have.

Since concussions still happen, physical therapists and athletic trainers still must find a way to help athletes deal with the injury. A plan must be developed to cope and manage a head injury. Concussions have had a tendency to cause lasting effects and this led the NFL to change the rules of the game as well as helped to develop plans to help manage the injury. The effects of a concussion when it happens are bad enough right? Well in this case, even players that have already retired are still having problems from their head injury.

In the past few years, the number of concussions per year has only spiked. The NFL calls it a “cultural change” in that the staff are more willing to report head injuries instead of neglecting them. However, to many like Christopher Nowinski- one of the founders of the Concussion Legacy foundation- this increase just shows that the NFL does not care to prevent head injuries, only treat them when they are developed. The number of concussions between the 2013 and 2014 season actually increased by 58

Brain trauma affects one out of three people in the national football league. In 2012 the stats of diagnosed concussions were 261, in 2013 they went down to 229, in 2014 concussions decreased to 206, in 2015 there were 275 diagnosed concussions and 2016 is decreased to 244. More concussions occur later on in the year. Half of the concussions are caused by contact with another helmet. Cornerbacks and receivers suffer more than other players.

In football today, concussions are the number one leading injury in the National Football League. In the past 7 years alittle over 10 national football players have died due to concussions. The list of players getting concussions during the past couple of years have just increased more and more as time goes on. A reason why the NFL concussion protocols are so strict is because the NFL does not want to get sued for mistreatment of players and insufficient care. That could possibly cause permanent damage physically and mentally to players.

This is true, however the number of incidents is on track this year to be even lower than last years. Concussions cannot be abolished entirely, they are present in every athletic activity, from Hockey to Gymnastics. Because of the effort, and the fact that it is showing results, the NFL should be credited for lowering the amount of concussions, an injury which is basically an occupational hazard of all athletes (excluding perhaps

Football is the most American of all of the sports we play. We have good memories of playing catch and watching games with our friends, however, there is a darker side to this all-American sport, the damage done to the brains of the players. While the NFL has attempted to make great strides in preventing further damage to players on the field suffering from concussions, the rates of concussions continue to rise. In 2014, 206 concussions were diagnosed, while in 2015, that number rose to 271 concussions. If these new regulations truly had an effect upon the safety of the players, we would instead see little growth, if not a decline, of diagnosed concussions.

It is not new news learning that concussions are a common occurrence throughout the sport of football. It just so happens that throughout the last two decades, former NFL players have or have threatened the NFL with lawsuits regarding their personal health, specifically brain injuries. Many experts and players also question if the latest technology used to prevent concussions from occurring are effective. Modern day CT scans can rule out bleeding in the brain, they however do not diagnose concussions. This causes many concussions to go unseen due to the lack of advancements in the use of CT equipment.

Although there is a lot more work to be done, the NFL and other leagues have taken a stance on the egregious situation that befalls those with concussions. There has been a recent decrease in the concussion rate due to the latest concussion protocol that the NFL and many other leagues have implemented that allow for professional trainers to look over players that are suspected of being concussed. Those players are not allowed to go back into the game if they still seem like they have a concussion, increasing the safety of those players who are unwilling to report a concussion for the purpose of being able to continue play. The enhanced detection and examination protocols have led to an 11.3 percent decrease in concussion rate. However, as stated previously, there is much more to do to eradicate concussions once and for all.

As concussions occur more and more in the NFL and among teens, more research has been conducted. There has been research on teens that concussions had occurred in teen’s brains, to find out what type of hit teens gotten by football may of suffer from it. There are many concussions in the NFL and especially teens who play football that have suffered death and never to play the sport they love. Teens and athletes who love the sport football, have been suffered by concussions that had ruin their playing for the most of this moments but research has been conducted of ways to help out teens and NFL. To prevent concussions, coaches and parents have the right to support their athletes to mental support from doctors.

Injuries caused from head contact need to be eliminated. Concussions and traumatic brain injuries are a very high percentage of the injuries that high school athletes sustain every year. Football is the most common sport for traumatic brain injury with 29.1% of the injuries being treated and released at the emergency room. The percent that is admitted to the emergency room is 24.7% for these brain injuries from playing football. ("Concussion Statistics for High School Sports", Lindsey Barton Straus, JD.

According to Frontline.org, the number of concussion sustained during games has dropped. In 2012 alone, 171 concussions were reported during games only. So far in the 2015 season, there have only been 154 concussions. This 10% drop is caused by more awareness of concussions. Players that are suspected to have a concussion or brain injury, have to get cleared by a neurologist before getting back into the game.

There is no evidence of when concussions really started but people didn’t know how bad they could be. In early stages of the NFL and other leagues concussions were not considered a big issue. Now concussions are affecting

"By the time they get to high school, kids have a 5% chance of sustaining a concussion for each season they play" (Zimmerman). If they choose to keep playing football then they will eventually end up with a brain concussion or brain damage. Over the years 65-80% of head injuries go unnoticed ("Stopping the..."58).   Football player ignore the fact that it is just a headache. Hospitals took 150,000 in 2001 to 250,000 in 2009 dramatically increased because of concussions ("Injuries in...").

After researching this topic extensively as well as talking to Dr. Peter Deluca who now acts as the head team physician for the Philadelphia Eagles I have come to the conclusion that concussions are a problem that are not controllable by the NFL. Dr. Deluca explained that these athletes are using the most up to date technology in the world as far as their padding and helmets go and unless hitting is completely eliminated from the NFL concussions is a problem that you will see not only within the NFL but also with every contact sport. Major traumatic brain injuries are something that needs to be taken more seriously especially in youth sports as well as in highs school. I strongly believe that there is more that the NFL can do to help protect these athletes and these athletes should be compensated for the injures that they sustain over the course of a given career. Some other things that I believe that NFL should consider to make the game safer include, Eliminating kickoffs, having a mandatory sit out period after sustaining a major traumatic brain injury, having more support programs for athletes who suffer from concussion issues such as short and long term memory loss and PTSD and lastly, Larger fines for helmet to helmet hits.