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Sports Arena
Too Rough? Try Touch
The NFL cracks down on concussion causers.
The NFL is coming to grips with a ghost that has haunted it since audiences became civilized.
Concussion. Inflicted more often when football helmets designed to prevent that very thing collide with 200-pound men propelling them at top speed. Part of the “problem” stems from the follow-up nature of modern sports reporting. Readers find out nowadays what really happened to large men carted off the field on stretchers. There’s a story that next day, and the next — an explanation of why so-and-so isn’t in the lineup anymore.
The powers that be are about to decide that victims must be punished, that somehow the game must be “gentled.” In other words, the viciousness of the “sport” must be tempered. A few veterans who have endured concussion and find they cannot accurately recall childhood events will agree. Something was “lost” in the transaction.
There is a simple solution, harkening back to the beginning days of “play.” Beginning children were not required to “tackle” in the modern sense: two hands below the waist would do. It was called “touch football.” Blocking and the rest of it were allowed, but a “touch” was enough. Many male progenitors could hardly wait until junior was in full regalia and ready to “hit” someone. Many more looked away when junior was slow getting up.
There was a Butte High School field that was covered with mine tailings, grass being a reluctant cover. Merely falling on it could cause damage.
But we pressed on. How many minds were damaged over the years? For every “Whizzer” White, there must have been a hundred street sweepers.
So we are about to return to a form of adult touch football. Have we lost our guts? Or have we regained our senses?
About the Author
Reid Collins is a former CBS and CNN news correspondent.
Letter to the Editor View all comments (48) | Leave a comment
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Darin| 10.22.10 @ 6:54AM
How about going back to "old school" uniforms? There wasn't a great deal of padding and helmets were leather caps. When the defensive player can just as easily get hurt as the offensive player, the defenders will change their methods. Then maybe we can get back to real tackling instead of "search and destroy missions."
Or look at rules in sports like rugby and Australian rules football. The players don't wear a great deal of pads, no helmets, and there is tackling involved.
Charles| 10.22.10 @ 7:40AM
You're exactly correct...I've said for years: if you want to reduce the injuries in football, reduce the amount of padding. The use of the helmet as a weapon is a result of the "hitter" feeling invulnerable, thus increasing the collision he makes upon the "hit-ee".
I'm much more of a college fan than a professional fan, but even Joe Paterno recently opined that removing the facemask would be a good idea....
cuban pete| 10.22.10 @ 9:06AM
George Connor, Notre Dame and Chicago Bear immortal said years ago when the face mask was getting popular, it was a bad idea because it encouraged a player to put his head where it did not belong.
ggoblue| 10.22.10 @ 9:26AM
you are right...take away the facemask and soften the helmet...
ps... i've played touch and flag football...men still each other with all their might and no one is wearing any pads at all...theres a reason so many guys quit...if you don't like contact football is not for you. at any level.
Bill Hussein O'Stalin| 10.22.10 @ 7:35AM
Is it any wonder this issue came up during Pink Month? Any organization which embraces diversity and multiculturalism is doomed. The NFL is no exception.
dave| 10.22.10 @ 10:12AM
Right on Bill! What self respecting football player where's pink? have you noticed the really lousy teams have everybody wearing pink, the tougher teams have a few losers wearing the pink. Every player wearing pink should be cut, every NFL administrator who backed this plan should be fired.
Dave| 10.22.10 @ 10:17AM
In all fairness let the NFL make November prostate cancer month. Every NFL player would have to wear a ball sac. Living in Buffalo it would be nice to see some professional football players with some balls.
txn4ever| 10.22.10 @ 1:09PM
Now that's some funny stuff right there!
John| 10.23.10 @ 1:52PM
Right on!!!! Is this a man's sport or are we watching women out there. Where is the support against prostate cancer?
Bill Hussein O'Stalin| 10.22.10 @ 7:35AM
Is it any wonder this issue came up during Pink Month? Any organization which embraces diversity and multiculturalism is doomed. The NFL is no exception.
Christian Gates| 10.25.10 @ 8:51PM
Ummm..."Pink Month" wasn't about multiculturalism or "diversity" - it was about breast cancer, a disease that is largely curable today due to initiatives like the NFL's "Pink" program.
While I agree that "multiculturalism" is an outrage, "Pink" month is not, and you apparently are just an uninformed a$$hat. Vigorously protesting against the stupidity of "diversity" as is meant on the university campus or "multiculturalism" is necessary; but do your research and get your facts straight first.
Private enterprise stepping up to deal with a public health problem is the HALLMARK of a Western, liberal (in the Founder's sense, not the modern sense), capitalist society.
Occam's Tool| 10.25.10 @ 10:16PM
No, Breast CA is more treatable today because of the efforts of the researchers and the free enterprise system, which rewards risk. I appreciate the dollar donations, but without the skill and sweat of the researchers, nothing gets translated to cures. The March of Dimes didn't stop polio, Jonas Salk did.
To use a different example, the best of the newer agents for schizophrenia, Abilify, was discovered because a Japanese researcher was willing to spend hundreds of hours counting rat whisker twitches (as a proxy for neuroleptic strength). The most effective mood stabilizer, lithium, was discovered by Dr. John Cade in Australia as a result of careful observation as an incidental finding.
I really get tired of the genius and perseverance of these researchers being minimized.
However, making fun of NFL Sports teams for calling attention to cancer research is an act of asshattery, no question.
Big Tony| 10.22.10 @ 8:11AM
Resricter plates in NASCAR, don't hit the QB in the NFL you might ruffle his skirt. They are simply trying to protect their investments and if they ruin the sport and cause the paying public to stop paying or lose interest whos lose is it? Not mine! Short term thinking rules supreme.
Ryan| 10.22.10 @ 8:26AM
The padding idea has a little merit, but there is a couple of new helmets that they SHOULD be using.
In any case, I'm actually in favor of the move. I don't think it will water down the game at all (3 instances this past weekend out of HOW many tackles?), and actually, PROPER tackling means NOT using your helmet.
I DO think that they should revamp the rules some on pass interference - and allow a little more physicality there (which may even cut down on some bad hits). Same with some of the QB "roughing" rules - there are times where it's pretty clear that a guy can't stop.
I think whoever believes this "waters down" pro football needs to really examine the game and their attitude toward entertainment. Football will STILL be a rough sport, and there will STILL be hard hits. I've thought it has become a bit more exciting to watch in recent years anyway - not as much 3-yards-and-a-cloud-of-dust yawners anymore. Spread out, wide-open offenses, historically good QB's...there's some complaints, sure, but it's a good product overall.
Tim*| 10.22.10 @ 8:27AM
I've played both American Football & Rugby.
Beware Of The " Chickification" of Men's Sports.
Arnold Ahlert| 10.22.10 @ 8:44AM
Over twenty years ago I called a sports radio program and asked why helmets couldn't be designed with a layer of shock reducer on the OUTSIDE, on top of the hard plastic.
I'm still asking.
Ryan| 10.22.10 @ 8:56AM
There's actually one out there that is starting to be used a bit more. A handful of players use it, and it should probably be mandated.
Howard| 10.22.10 @ 8:55AM
A two game suspension with loss of pay will quickly stop the head to head hits.
Denver Todd| 10.22.10 @ 9:03AM
What the NFL doesn't do, ObamaCare will. Football will change if the government deems it too expensive to socialized medicine to heal concussion victims. It isn't just your soft drink that is at risk in the new order.
Denver Todd| 10.22.10 @ 9:03AM
What the NFL doesn't do, ObamaCare will. Football will change if the government deems it too expensive to socialized medicine to heal concussion victims. It isn't just your soft drink that is at risk in the new order.
JimP| 10.22.10 @ 9:05AM
Tempering the 'viciousness" of football dates back to Teddy Roosevelt. I've lost track of the number of truly, exceptionally talented players who's careers were cut short over the last 50 years due to "vicious" hits that amounted to nothing more than intentional infliction of disabling injury. Personally I think the game is better today because of the rules changes made for safety and health. It is still a very rough, Alpha male game and takes genuine guts to play it even without the cheap shot head banging. One look at John Mackey, the great Baltimore Colt tight end, is evidence enough that concusions should be reduced as much as possible.
donserge| 10.22.10 @ 9:07AM
Why watch a sport that is totally controlled by television? i.e. incessant replays, 5 to 10 minute "challenges" , the amount and time of TV commercials, the time a game is played and consideration of the participants. The point Tim made about the "chickification" of the sport is well taken; political correctness rules the day.
Ryan| 10.22.10 @ 9:52AM
You've described the major problem with going to an NFL game - the pacing is very odd. It usually translates okay to television.
Jarvis| 10.24.10 @ 9:29AM
donserge,
I stopped watching long ago for these reasons. It's even worse to attend a game, literally unendurable!
Christian Gates| 10.25.10 @ 8:57PM
This is a very interesting point, because I'll wager that the physical changes brought about by television breaks have actually increased the rate of catastrophic injury. Not seeking media attention, mind you - but in the form of larger players moving at about the same speed.
The slower the game gets, the longer the players have to recover and the more weight they can carry. I'll bet that a large part of the weight gain we've seen in the NFL is due to the length of time it takes to play a game.
The more frequently you have to perform an action, the less mass you can move to do it. Look at enduro athletes - they're exactly the same size they were 50 years ago. Elite sprinters are also the same size, more or less - a pure power event. Only has seen a dramatic increase in size, and only football has been dramatically changed by lengthening the recovery period afforded players through commercials and replay.
Speed up the game and the players MUST deflate.
Stammon| 10.22.10 @ 9:16AM
"Touch" Boxing won't be far behind.
And have you heard of the new Indiana deer hunting rules?
It's called "Tag".
Tim*| 10.22.10 @ 9:17AM
Spearing's already a penalty in The NFL .
Brubaker| 10.22.10 @ 9:25AM
A few years ago in the Maryland suburbs of Washington, DC, a young girl decided she wanted to play football on her high school team. Coaches, players and parents attempted to dissuade her, pointing out that football, even at the high school level, is an inherently violent sport. She and her mother refused to listen and, under threat of legal action, the school caved and the girl was permitted to join the team.
On the first day of practice, she was severely injured. Not surprisingly, her mother and various activists professed shock, shock mind you, that she could get injured playing football.
Changing the rules can moderate certain dangers, but the inherent risk can never be eliminated. Big bodies colliding at high speed virtually guarantee periodic injuries. Those of us who are ardent Redskins fans vividly remember November 1985 when Joe Theismann suffered his career ending leg injury. Lawrence Taylor didn't set out to injure Joe. He was just trying to make a play, but the play ended with Joe's leg bones sticking out of his uniform.
Concussion is a very real concern, but it has become the latest boogey man for the NFL and for football in general. Yes, provide as much protection as is reasonably possible, but also remember that when you choose to play violent sports, stuff happens.
Ryan| 10.22.10 @ 9:50AM
LT was also the first guy madly waving toward the sidelines to get Theismann the help he needed.
froglegs007| 10.22.10 @ 4:09PM
Joe Theismann's career did not end because of this injury but rather because of an insurance policy that he had thru Lloyds of London at that time. Jack Lambert's career also ended because of a similiar policy rather than the stated "turf toe". These policies corrupted pro sports and severely hurt the pocket books of the issurers to the point which these policies were dropped.
Nunya| 10.22.10 @ 5:40PM
Actually, Joe himself admitted that he was cleared by his doctor to play any sport he wanted to, except football. His legs would likely break again if he got hit.
I had a motivational tape of his some time ago when he addressed the issue, and the depression he went through afterward, and how he overcame it.
JimP| 10.23.10 @ 12:24PM
Didn't his broken leg end up 1" shorter than the other as well? Many of we Redskins fans didn't appreciate Joe's talent as much as we should have at the time. The years since the 'Skins last Super Bowl apprearance have caused many of us to no longer take for granted just how good Joe was. Sorry Joe, you made it look too easy I guess.
PJ| 10.22.10 @ 9:41AM
Guys,
You don't have to wack each other's heads to prove your manhood! It's usually the women who have to mop up, ie nurse the ones who become droolers for the rest of their lives.
There are plenty of violent, physical activities out there besides direct head-butting! How about grizzly bear wrestling! You'll be dead w/in a couple of days or you'll need nursing for a short period of time to fully recuperate.
Robert| 10.22.10 @ 10:02AM
If Americans wanted to watch a bunch of sissies kicking a ball around a field without hitting each other, then soccer might actually be popular.
cuban pete| 10.22.10 @ 10:07AM
PJ,
I didn't play football or any sport for that matter to "prove my manhood". I just enjoyed it.
I did however, marry a nurse who helps me with my drooling.
Have a pleasant weekend.
PJ| 10.22.10 @ 11:57AM
"I did however, marry a nurse who helps me with my drooling."
Sounds like wifey knew what she was getting into when she married you. Treat her w/extra kindness & God bless her!
cuban pete| 10.22.10 @ 12:12PM
PJ,
I still cause her to question her judgment on a daily basis. I will share your generous comment with her.
All the Best to you and yours.
rodval| 10.22.10 @ 10:58AM
I hate pink! Let the boys play!
Maybe reducing padding would help.
Did you know that boxing glove padding causes brain problems?
Bare knuckle fighting used to cause hand injury but no brain effects (long term).
Look it up.
MBD| 10.22.10 @ 12:42PM
The last time I checked the NFL rosters, there were only a handful of 200 pound men, and many of those were in non-contact positions. Perhaps you meant 250 or 300 pound men?
jrjr| 10.22.10 @ 4:42PM
I protest all of this human suffering. Football is a contest that should be played by mechanical robots, not people. People are much too fragile. I learned that in freshman football in high school when I attempted to boll over a guy that was 40 pounds heavier than my 140.
GBinPA| 10.22.10 @ 5:06PM
I love the game, and I've played my fair share. I'd like to see some restriction on zone defenses. Make all DB's play man to man. People get in trouble when the safety comes over to help the corner. This is when the most dangerous hits occur. This will put the offense at an advantage, but modifying the blocking rules on the Offensive Line will help to offset that.
Jeff| 10.22.10 @ 5:41PM
its called risk vs. reward ... adults should be allowed to decide ...
I can list a dozen other activites/sports that are also potentially dangerous ... so what ?
jstwndring| 10.22.10 @ 5:45PM
Why stop at football? I call, no more checking in hockey! Then the girls can play. *sigh*
Nunya| 10.22.10 @ 5:50PM
I've played football with pads, without pads, flag, and touch--even Frisbee football. I love football, to me it's chess with real people. And I, nor anyone I ever played with were ever seriously hurt (thank God), with the exception of a broken arm or two....
It's a violent game there's no doubt about it, and even when I was playing flag we had people hitting each other hard, it's part of the game. I think that limiting the pads would probably have a significant impact on lessening the major injuries like concussions, as if it hurts one when they hit someone else, it's likely that they won't be flying all over the field and leading with their helmet or making helmet-to-helmet contact. However, having said that, there will be a lot more minor injuries and bleeding on the field, which is what the pads were originally intended to prevent.
Nittany| 10.22.10 @ 6:28PM
Lose the pads; it will do a lot more than reduce head injuries. It will bring back the sweet upright striders like Jimmy Brown, Gayle Sayers, Alan Amaeche, (John Capelletti, too) instead of those little tanks polwing head down into the pile While we're at it, widen the hash marks again and enjoy the ballet of the wide sweep. Protecting the QB ?
Wide hashes will mean leaner D-lineman who would be covering about 55 yards each play not 35 or so. And finally, give the QB the HEAD BOB BACK ! No more timing and teeing off on blitzes. D-line will be back on their heels a little. Advantage offense. Who doesn't want more offense ?
Yosemeti Sam| 10.23.10 @ 12:34AM
HOF Pittsburgh Steeler Jack Lambert on Quarterbacks and by extension opponents in general - " Quarterbacks should wear dresses" - if they don't want to be roughed up somewhat.
Any oldsters recall a BRUTAL Unitas/Colts
Starr/Packers game (on grass) when players on both sides where being carried off the field after being - mangled?
The good olde days of Pro Football!
NCR| 10.24.10 @ 8:34PM
Have you noticed you only see the cheerleaders for seconds at a time. I think there's a women up in the booth that pushes the commercial button to cover up those nasty fit bodies. The NFL is P&ssy; whipped.
Dick Butkus| 10.25.10 @ 1:50PM
They're all pussies in the National Fruitball League. They should play in jeans and t shirts if they're really tough. Pads are only for sissies and fags.