SPORTS OPINION
An estimated 1.6 to 3.8 million concussions, whether they’re related to sports or recreation, occur each year in the United States according to protectthebrain.org.
Most of the sports teams here at San Jose State have the risk of a student athlete suffering from a concussion.
Concussions or Chronic Traumatic Encephalopathy (CTE) are becoming a much larger issue and are putting athletes in serious life-threatening situations on the field.
Whenever a player during a game suffers a blow to the head, or any other head or neck injury, they are taken to the team doctor and put through the “concussion protocol.”
This consists of a baseline determination diagnosis during a neurological exam performed by a doctor, a gradual exercise program on the sidelines (such as stationary bike, light aerobic activities and before being allowed to check back into the game, they must be cleared by a doctor and an independent neurological consultant.
Today more than ever we see reports of plays showing “concussion-like” symptoms during football games and the NFL is not taking this issue seriously enough.
According to an article on pbs.org, in 2007 NFL commissioner Roger Goodell called for the first ever concussion summit, which included league doctors and outside sources.
The outside sources presented their findings about the dangers of concussions and were promptly dismissed by the league officials. In a press conference following the summit, Goodell sold to the media the “accomplishments” that have been made by the NFL doctors with this issue despite the fact there were none.
St. Louis Rams receiver Wes Welker, who was signed to the team a few weeks ago, was absent from the field for the past 10 months because of multiple concussions.
Welker has suffered three concussions in the NFL which made his comeback to the field all the more puzzling, as he is putting his life in danger and the league is allowing this to happen.
“I don’t think you’re courageous. Or tough. I think you’re f—ing stupid,” said prominent sportswriter Jeff Pearlman in an ESPN article. “Wes, you’re a young guy, and you need to retire right now.”
The NFL is not doing anything to stop him from continuing his career. There needs to be a rule implemented to stop players from re-entering the game after multiple concussions, it is just stupid that they are condoning this.
The other problem is the issue of playing for a paycheck. Football players have stated that if they notice they have a concussion, they will try to hide it because they need to make money and put food on the table for their families.
Clearly the concussion protocol is either not implemented enough, or it needs to be improved, because these players should not be putting their lives at risk to play a game.
According to an article on concussions by CNN, 87 of the 91 former NFL players who donated their brains after death to science, tested positive for CTE.
San Francisco 49ers player Justin Smith said in an ESPN report that players know what problems can occur by playing with a concussion, yet would risk further damage for the money.
“It doesn’t take a rocket scientist to figure out if (you have) a concussion … Yeah I’d still play through it, It’s part of it. It’s part of the game,” Smith said in the ESPN article.
The most frustrating thing Smith said was when he talked about how the NFL handles these concussion situations.
“I think if you are noticeably messed up, yeah, they’ll take you out. But if you’ve just got some blurry vision, I’d say that’s the player’s call. And most guys – 99 percent of the guys in the NFL – are going to play through it,” Smith said.
After hearing these professional players speak about the danger they are putting themselves in just to play football, it makes you step back and look at the big picture.
We are here at SJSU, we have a football team and it almost beckons the question, are they doing everything in their power to protect these athletes?
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