MovieChat Forums > Concussion (2015) Discussion > Get them while they're young

Get them while they're young

posted 8 years ago by beerguy55
1 reply | jump to latest

Though you have seen a few players retire young recently due to fears of brain damage, many players are saying that now that they know the risks they would still play the game.

And, frankly, it's because they are, for lack of a better word, addicted to it. They've played since they were kids. It's all they know.

The NFL will continue to try to get parents to enroll their children into football. If enrollment continues to slide, the NFL is doomed, and a generation from now it will be as popular as roller derby. If the NFL can convince parents that they are doing what they can to reduce the risks of concussions - either by actual action, or deception - then they will continue to prosper.

But they need the most kids they can to start playing at 8-10 years old, and get them hooked on the game.

[–] totalbollacks 8 years ago

Nail on the head, no pun intended. I view this subject as an outsider in a country that has almost zero interest in American Football.
I don't think the sport itself is a sentence to brain damage, I believe it is the amount of body and head protection that has made it dangerous.
If I lived in the US and had a school age son who was keen on all sports I would try and dissuade him from the football game because of the protection that allows unnaturally severe clashes.
Strip some of the "protection" away and the permanent injuries would decrease. Of course the short term injuries cost big money in a seasons campaign so we know where the team sponsors/owners sentiments lie.