Renewed Head Injury Concerns Put The NFL Back Under The Microscope

There has been considerable attention directed in recent years toward the short- and long-term impact of head trauma on NFL players, and the league itself has implemented new policies aimed at reducing such injuries on the field. But critics still say there’s a lot more than needs to be done if pro football can ever become an acceptably safe sport.

The trend continues

It’s been nearly a decade since the NFL acknowledged players have a higher risk than the general population of developing the degenerative brain disease chronic traumatic encephalopathy.

There’s plenty of evidence to support this connection, including the fact that more than 300 former football players were diagnosed with CTE during autopsies. Experts say the result of taking powerful and repeated blows to the head is similar to that of military service members who experience nearby explosions.

Although the NFL mandated safer equipment and changed certain rules in hopes of reducing these dangerous collisions, many experts say NFL players are still in grave danger.

And in recent news

A trio of headlines covered by news outlets far and wide over the past few weeks have only amplified pressure on the NFL to take additional safety steps:

• Dolphins QB Tua Tagovailoa faces calls to retire after sustaining his latest concussion
• Giants WR Malike Nabers set a new receiving record before he was sidelined with a concussion
• NFL legend Brett Favre testified on Capitol Hill that he was diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease

In order to prevent such injuries from remaining commonplace across the league, player advocates have made a number of recommendations — such as requiring the use of “Guardian Caps,” which go over helmets and can reduce the impact of collisions.

But as neuroscientist Julie Stamm concluded, the “best way to prevent” head injuries “is to not have impacts.”

Chris Agee October 1st, 2024

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