Debate-NFL Concussion (Pro)
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Feb 20, 2024
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PAPER
Should the NFL be held liable for head injuries sustained by players during their athletic careers?
Research shows that a multitude of retired NFL players have sustained a variety of head
injuries that will be debilitating in the future, they have no way of knowing exactly how these
will affect the brain or how it will affect the former players' quality of life. In a New York Times
article, Ken Belson states that more than 4,500 former players and their families brought a
lawsuit against the NFL and have received an almost 765 Million dollar settlement fund.
Among many terms of agreement, there is a clause that this specific settlement is not an
admission of guilt, this specifically is interesting because part of the lawsuit brought against the
NFL was that they knowingly gave players contracts minimizing the risks brought on by the
sport and it was misleading. This shows that not only is there deceit in the NFL but there is also
purposeful manipulation to generate revenue with disregard to player safety.
Another issue brought to attention during this lawsuit is that the NFL is using players
who are injured as “clickbait” by forcing them to continue playing after a traumatic injury and
minimizing the severity of the specific injury, this results in more views for the streaming
platforms the NFL and any sponsors that profit from viewers. The biggest issue with this is that
the NFL is manipulating injuries that could be debilitating further on down the road and making
them seem inconsequential and not worth pursuing treatment for. Injuries such as Chronic
traumatic encephalopathy (C.T.E.), Alzheimer's, dementia, brain lesions, and a multitude of other
diseases run rampant through former NFL players and are largely the reason this lawsuit was
brought about in the first place. “
The Boston University CTE Center announced today that they
have now diagnosed 345 former NFL players with chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE) out
of 376 former players studied (91.7 percent)”. However, this may be slightly biased since CTE
can only be diagnosed after death, but this is still a shocking number
, “For comparison, a 2018
Boston University study of 164 brains of men and women donated to the Framingham Heart
Study found that only 1 of 164 (0.6 percent) had CTE. The lone CTE case was a former college
football player.” These statistics do not inspire confidence when looking at the impacts that
professional football has on its former players. Lawsuits against the NFL are not uncommon but
due to the impact that the result of this lawsuit had it is considered one of the more important
ones brought up.
Although many support the NFL taking responsibility for their part in these former
players' injuries, many others disagree and say the NFL was in no way at fault for these issues.
They bring up the fact that players should just be aware of the issues and do their research but it
is hard to take care of yourself if your job is threatened when you can’t play a game. The NFL
was forcing faster recovery times and forcing players to play in games that they were just
physically not ready for or were hesitant due to lingering issues. Like any other injury, over time,
if not healed properly, the injury will continue to worsen and keep deteriorating until the body
can not function anymore. Injured players do not make the team money so there is always a push
for injured players to heal quickly and get back to playing and pulling in revenue for the team
and the NFL itself.
Another way the NFL has tried to appease people calling for a safer sport is by changing
the rules and making them “safer”, technically the 2023 NFL rulebook has 19 rules but they are
divided and then split and changed and amended. Over time the sport has indeed changed and
been made safer however the NFL could be doing more to make this sport safer and that is what
the people who took part in this lawsuit are calling for, they purely want awareness brought to
the topic and to show people that not everything is as it seems and it is a dangerous sport. There
have been advances in medicine and protection, but it is not enough as so many people are still
coming out and telling their stories about their injuries and experiences. Although there are quite
a few former players and families coming out and disputing the NFL there are countless more
that have been affected but aren’t brave enough to come forward and share their story.
Not only should we bring attention to former players coming out against the NFL but we
should also bring attention to current players that this might affect in the future because there is
research coming out continually about this subject, and there is more awareness surrounding the
risks and dangers of head injuries suffered during playing time. Because there is an increased
need for safer playing regulations and safer player equipment, the NFL should continually be
changing its rules and regulations to accompany ongoing research surrounding the safety of the
game. There is increasing awareness and transparency throughout the league however it is not at
the level it should be yet. Pressure from the public as a result of this lawsuit will help protect
current players and can start preventative measures to help lessen the risk of fatal head injuries
that develop later in life.
The NFL needs to protect its players, not run them into the ground and create irreversible
injuries they will never recover from. It is vital to see that the NFL is indeed responsible in part
for these lifelong injuries and should help these families that are suffering as a result of these
injuries. That is why the NFL should be held responsible and liable for head injuries and other
complications experienced by current players.
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