Goodell understandably downplays head trauma in NFL
Let's talk about analogies because to be effective they must be used correctly.
NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell used a poor one, but his message was right on the money. When asked about the dangers of playing football, Goodell's response: “There's risk in everything. There's risk in sitting on the couch.”
The question basically was directed toward the lasting effects of concussions in the NFL. The topic has become a crutch for some of the mainstream media.
Oh, it's certainly serious, but, honestly, a good number of people really don't care.
Goodell comparing sitting on a couch to playing in the NFL is absurd, but you can be at risk in almost anything you do. Walking down the street, going up the stairs, climbing a ladder, being a policeman, a roofer … well, you get my point.
The 1985 Super Bowl Bears were featured the other night on ESPN, and the late Walter Payton and Dave Duerson both were discussed. Payton was ill with liver disease and battled for his life. Duerson took his own life after struggling personally and professionally.
It was discovered after Duerson killed himself that he suffered from CTE, a degenerative brain disease. Payton didn't have a chance, but Duerson did.
Goodell is downplaying the dangers of concussions and some people aren't happy about it. But he's doing it because it hurts the league to do otherwise. and he's right.
To be honest, the concussion issue is a channel changer for me.
No one wants to hear about concussions except the mainstream sports media, and Goodell knows it. If a player gets a concussion, he is taken off the field and everyone moves on. There are a few topics that won't go away, and when they are being discussed, I change the channel.
First, it's concussions, second it's the Washington team name, and third it was why there wasn't a team in Los Angeles. Finally, there will be with the Rams heading back to the West Coast from St. Louis.
Can't we just move on? It is said that many players are leaving the game. That might be the case, but there are hundreds who would love to play in the NFL.
I read where Oakland Raiders great Kenny Stabler died of colon cancer but also had CTE. Hey, I bet Troy Aikman, Mike Ditka, Steve Young and numerous other players were concussed at some point.
Yet some still make millions doing TV and commercials. When they die years down the road from natural causes, ESPN probably will run a crawl saying they also had CTE.
Give me a break.
The movie “ Concussion” bombed. Do you know why? We all have our own issues to worry about. Goodell understands that “Joe Six-Pack” really doesn't care about concussions in football.
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