How High Injury Rate has Deemed the NFL the No Future League
Has the rough nature of the NFL caused an increase in Injury Rate?
By: Ty Taschner
Published: October 16, 2016
LAS VEGAS(October 16, 2016)- Injury rates in the NFL have increased; both concussions & other injuries. The players are bigger, they are faster, and they are stronger, and with this comes increased risk of injury(Casson, Viano, Pellman, 2010).[1]
Recent studies have confirmed the reports on increased levels of injury in the NFL. 182 concussions were reported following the 2015 season, a 58% increase from the previous year. A study by the American Academy of Neurology discovered more than 40% of retired NFL Players showed signs of traumatic injury (Study: More than 40 Percent of Retired NFL Players Had Brain Injury). [2]
The recent findings have caused fear around the league. An example of this is the early retirement of D’Brickashaw Ferguson. Ferguson, 32 had played over 10,000 snaps and was deemed healthy, but called it quits after proof of consistent blows to the head leading to future problems, “I fear the unavoidable truth is that playing football has placed me in harm’s way, and I am not yet sure of the full extent of what it might cost me” Ferguson said (Schwarz, 2009). [3]
Earlier this year in March, Jeff Miller, the senior vice president of health and safety for the NFL, agreed to connections linking football-related head trauma and CTE. Basing his assessment off the study of BU neuropathologist Dr. Ann McKee, which diagnosed CTE in the brains of 90 94 former NFL players(Fainaru, 2016). [4] Head injuries are not the only concern however, as the impact of the hits around the league are increasing annually.
Without having a direct measurement of the amount of force behind the hits, it is hard for the NFL to be able to register how much force is needed to cause a “serious injury.” In 2009 Greg Aiello, league spokesperson, said “it’s quiet obvious from the medical research that’s been done that concussions can lead to long term problems” (Schwarz, 2016) [5]. In the 2013-2014 season alone there were more than 1300 injuries and over 85 concussions (CDC, 2016).[6]
However, studies that have produced results arguing against increasing injury rates are becoming more common. Roger Goodell commented on the findings saying “Football has never been safer than it is right now” and the league has been adamant about making the league “a safer environment”. Eliminating all chop blocks and peel blocks by running backs in 2015 was a change that has helped reduce injuries to the lower halves of players in the NFL (NFL, 2015)
Since 2012 concussions in regular season NFL games have gone down 35% (NFL,2015). Correlating with this, since 2013 hits to defenseless players have gone down 68% (NFL,2015). Both tests were confirmed by data compiled by the NFL.
Commissioner Goodell commented on recent changes in the league to make it safer, “We have made nearly 40 rule changes in the past decade to promote player safety,” Goodell said. The proactive mindset of health professionals and organizations across the league has led to improvements that look to be continued in the future (NFL,2015). Players benefit from these improvements and Goodell stands behind all ideas of improvement for player safety, “Across the board, we are seeing significant and sustained improvements. But our work cannot and will not stop” said Goodell (NFL, 2015).
Support from around the league from officials such as Dr. John York, Chairman of the NFL Owners’ Committee on Health and Safety, has helped increase awareness of the injury-prone NFL and stimulate change. Support for new studies and research on injuries have become more frequent and look to make a change “Last year for the first time, all 32 clubs collected injury data using electronic medical records. This allows us to track player health and analyze significant amounts of information to drive change and make the game safer” said York (NFL,2015).
At the end of each season stats and injury reports are compiled and studied. More evidence becomes available and new ideas come out how to make the league safer. Yet each year, statistics continue to show an increasing number of injured players. The fans and the owners are usually the center-piece for much of the leagues actions; it’s about time the players were put first.
Bibliography
2015 NFL Health and Safety Report. (n.d.). Retrieved October 16, 2016, from http://static.nfl.com/static/content/public/photo/2015/08/05/0ap3000000506671.pdf
Block, J. (2016, April 8). We Shouldn’t Be Surprised When NFL Players Retire Early Anymore [Web log post]. Retrieved October 16, 2016, from http://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/dbrickashaw-ferguson-nfl-early-retirement-no-surprise_us_5707c4d5e4b0c4e26a2273fa
Breslow, J. M. (2016, February 1). FRONTLINE. Retrieved October 16, 2016, from http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/frontline/article/what-the-nfls-new-concussion-numbers-dont-answer/
Casson, I. R., Viano, D. C., Powell, J. W., & Pellman, E. J. (2010, November 2). Twelve Years of National Football League Concussion Data. Retrieved October 16, 2016, from https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3438866/
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. (2016, May 10). CDC study: Former NFL players not at increased risk of suicide [Press release]. Cdc.gov. Retrieved October 16, 2016, from http://www.cdc.gov/media/releases/2016/p0510-nfl-suicide-risk.html
Fainaru, S. (2016, March 15). Top NFL official acknowledges football-CTE link. Retrieved October 16, 2016, from http://www.espn.com/espn/otl/story/_/id/14972296/top-nfl-official-acknowledges-link-football-related-head-trauma-cte-first
Legum, J. (2015, September 21). Two Weeks Into The Season, 15 Percent Of Football Players Have Suffered An Injury. Retrieved October 16, 2016, from https://thinkprogress.org/two-weeks-into-the-season-15-percent-of-football-players-have-suffered-an-injury-9a9a1d906cdf#.7tfpknw8m
Schwarz, A. (2009, December 20). N.F.L. Acknowledges Long-Term Concussion Effects. NY Times. Retrieved October 16, 2016, from http://www.nytimes.com/2009/12/21/sports/football/21concussions.html?_r=0
Study: More than 40 Percent of Retired NFL Players Had Brain Injury. (n.d.). Retrieved October 16, 2016, from https://www.aan.com/PressRoom/Home/PressRelease/1453
Vinton, N. (2016, January 30). Concussions up 58% this season in NFL regular season games. Retrieved October 16, 2016, from http://www.nydailynews.com/sports/football/concussions-rise-nfl-league-data-reveals-article-1.2513828
