Document Type

Essay

Publication Date

12-1-2019

Keywords

Concussion, concussion crisis, national football league, brain-effects

Abstract

Football has been a popular sport in America since the 1920s. With the sport being so popular, there are many levels ranging from high school to college to various professional leagues. According to Kathryn Heinze and Di Lu (2017), the National Football League, the most popular professional football league, is the biggest and most powerful sports league in the United States. In 2015, the estimated revenue was $13 billion (Heinze & Lu, 2017). Although extremely successful, concussions have become a major problem and pose a significant threat to the future of the sport. The National Football League is run by a commissioner, who right now is Roger Goodell, and an executive committee of owners and high officials from every team (Heinze & Lu, 2017). This group is responsible for changing and creating rules and running the league. One of the biggest problems this executive committee faces today is this concussion crisis. Ever since the early 2000s, the long-term brain effects of concussions have arisen to very high priority for this committee due to all kinds of research being done. Many different studies have shown the problems with concussions; however, many of these studies are taken out of context and scare fans and family members more than it should. In recent years, big strides have been made that have proven the National Football League is adaptable. Along with this, everyone needs to realize that the research done should be used to help make football safer, rather than using it to promote the end of the sport. Furthermore, more research should be done to fully understand concussions. With the increased awareness on concussions in recent years, the National Football League has made significant strides by using the research and changing the rules to try to make the sports safer and less concussion prone, and this adaptability is the main reason why the sport of football should not be in danger of ending.

Comments

Bennett Perkins was the winner of the 2020 Jessie O’Kelly Freshman Essay Award

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