Concussions in Football

You are probably as sick as I am of all the talk on concussions. What’s the genesis of the problem – is it the helmet, is it training and conditioning, is it the speed of the game . . . Just last week I saw where a player was penalized (college) by suspending him for a game seven days after a hit. Now I want to be clear, players should be penalized for what is deemed as a potentially catastrophic hit. But seven days later?

My thought, penalize the athlete, but severely penalize/punish the game official who did not make the call. The point is if we enforce the quick whistle, and the head-first contacts; this problem will resolve. Dr. Robert Cantu has eloquently said in many of his presentations that the helmet itself is not the problem. The problem is the linear acceleration and cummulative contact these athletes endure during practices and games.

Let’s see what we can do my enforcing the rules and taking the head out of football. Through time, the more protective the helmet has been, the greater the number of neck and associated head injuries as these players deems themselves indestructible. Officials have a significant responsibility, and need to take it seriously

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