God damned ambulance chasers!

I hate this whole trumped up pile of crap about concussions. It seems that there are people who are out to ruin the game, maybe even outlaw the game - non-football fans in a lot of cases, people of that political persuasion that loves government intrusion, meddlers, shitheads, etc.

As for affected players, MOST recover just fine - Troy Aikman, Steve Young, numerous others. A very very very few have long term effects. Of those, some, like Jim McMahon, likely have other factors that may well have scrambled his brain. The bottom line IMO is that for the multiple millions these guys make to play a fun game that virtually all of us would play for 1/1,000th as much, they can damn well afford to take the risk - without all the bullshit being pushed these days. And if any player feels differently, let him just give up his multiple millions and get out of the game.

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Might be the most off-base post I've read on this site during my short tenure. Government intrusion? NO ONE has made that an issue. Non-football fans? There are thousands of ex-players included in the suit and the new rules, etc. are an attempt by the NFL itself to reduce the injury risk. No one, and I mean NO ONE is trying to get rid of the game.

Bringing up a few anecdotal examples of guys who have had concussions and turned out ok does not the least bit mean it isn't an issue. For every Aikman and Young you can mention there are a lot more Seaus and Duersons. The fact is studies on brain injuries have made it clear that it's an issue, the extent just isn't fully understood yet.

At the root of it all is the basis of the suit itself, which is that the NFL and its doctors claimed for many years there was no long term effect from repeated head hits, when clearly studies have shown that there is. It isn't that someone is trying to make a buck when they "knew the risk" it's that they were given false information about the risk upon which they were to make that judgement. It compares to tobacco companies who knew smoking was clearly tied to health risks and ran ads implying that doctors thought it was not bad for you...that's what got them successfully sued.

The game has always changed in order to make it safer. Teddy Roosevelt rewrote the rules to include the forward pass in 1905 as part of an effort to reduce the number of on-field deaths in the game. Clothes line, facemask and head slap rules all had to be instituted over the years as necessary, just like the horse collar and the newly enforced head to head hit rules. Players will adapt like they always have, and I for one am in favor of their having longer careers and more productive lives after football.

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Well, Hoss, at least you're willing to discuss it, misguided as you are.

This whole emphasis on concussions line of crap is one of my pet peeves. Hell yeah, it is being driven by namby pamby types who would just as soon see football GONE. And while there isn't any government intrusion at this point (I didn't say there was), it is that same class of people that want every damn thing regulated who push this shit. Motorcycle helmets, seat belts, nutrition consciousness courtesy of the fat-assed first lady, sticking their noses into literally everything.

Go ahead and counter Aikman and Young with those two idiots who offed themselves. First of all, in addition to the two very high profile guys I mentioned, there is s plethora of players who got concussed and retired after a normal career with no long term badness. As for YOUR examples, every occupation has a tiny tiny percentage of people who go off the deep end for reasons unknown and either kill themselves or whatever. Pinning those two on concussions is a major stretch. Chemicals ingested is at least as likely, IMO.

At any rate, I say again, if any player thinks it ain't worth the risk, let him forego playing a fun kids game and making those multiple millions.

And comparing this to the tobacco companies? Nobody ever got paid to smoke; They just may have justified the lawsuits by putting unknown shit in their product; But basically, hell yeah, that was lawyers, do-gooder assholes, etc. sticking their noses in also - and I say that as somebody who never smoked and hate the stench of the whole activity.

And as for the bunch of rules that Teddy Roosevelt and others put in, the hell with all that shit. Which is more interesting, UFC or Olympic boxing? Football with all those silly rules or football without?

It seems like some people want to change it from NFL to NFFL - National FLAG Football League (or should that L be omitted?)

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"This whole emphasis on concussions line of crap is one of my pet peeves. Hell yeah, it is being driven by namby pamby types who would just as soon see football GONE."

Not sure why you say I am misguided when you open with a nonsensical statement like this then fail to support it at all.

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Specifically WHAT could you possibly disagree with of what I said?

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Sure...specifically that emphasis on concussions is a line of crap (it isn't) and that anything is being driven by "namby pamby types sho would just as soon see football gone".
The fact that there is a law suit by so many former players and questions about current medical practices on the sidelines by the players union belies your first statement, and there is no evidence whatsoever that there is any truth to the latter. Not even those who want a greater emphasis on head safety want football gone. Heck even parents who fear for their kids' safety are getting on board with the "heads up" program because they want kids to be able to play with a lower risk, not to eliminate the game. Other than the current focus on the issue being a pet peeve of yours, that whole statement was nonsense.

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OK, you said what you disagree with, and I disagree with your disagreement hahaha.

Do you know how lawyers "recruit" people to join class action lawsuits? I seriously doubt much if any of the driving here is being done by former players. They are just along for the ride with some God damned lawyers sniffing a big payday. As for the "problem" itself, there are so very very few actual cases of long term brain scrambling, and even there, the link to football trauma is shaky at best. Like so many of these trumped up medical controversies, it is people with an agenda - if not monetary, certainly overly concerned people who enjoy sticking their noses into other people's business. If people really think football is bad for their kids, let them keep the kids out - although that would be a damn shame because of the falseness of the pretense to spoil the kid's fun - but it is at least a parental right. As for pros and anybody of age, just like motorcycle riders, just like drivers using seatbelts (or not), just like people wanting to drink a nice sugary soda or eat a nice greasy burger, THEY SHOULD HAVE THE RIGHT without additional hassle or expense or trouble from the damned do-gooders or nose sticker inners. AGREE or DISAGREE?

And hell yeah, there is a faction in this whole fiasco that would like to see football disappear - some for do-gooder reasons, and some for more sinister stuff - wanting to make the lives miserable for good normal Americans in as many ways as possible. I know you probably disagree with that, but it's true just the same.

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