If they DO ban kickoffs...

[Kontradiction]

This would be a great argument if I was saying we should make it not violent. I didn't.

I've been watching the NFL as long as you and I honestly don't think that getting rid of 10 plays a game (kick offs) will be the death knell and the upside is that it reduces one of the phases where some of the worst stuff can happen. I'm inclined to think you're getting overly emotional about a part of the game that only real nerds care about if you think no more KOs would have a significant impact on the viewing experience.

As far as how far I'd be willing to see it go? I dunno, I'd still watch if it was flag football, but I do like the tackling part. I know rugby has less concussions but more spinal injuries so I'm not sure what could be done to decrease the debilitating brain injuries but I'll feel better whatever is done that reduces situations where we've seen the rapid decline of the players I loved rooting for.

Emotional appeals to the past don't work for me when 10 years later we're hearing about the husk of a person left behind by football.

Except that's what you, and others, are saying. When you want to change rules and take out certain plays to make the game safer, you're advocating to make a violent sport a non-violent sport. And what does it accomplish? You're not eliminating CTE or concussions. Those will still happen regardless. The only thing that it's doing is going to further ruin the game as we all know it.

And it's not just about eliminating kickoffs. It's changing the rules for defenseless receivers, the ridiculous "head down" rule that just got implemented (and will no doubt be heavily skewed toward the defensive side of the ball), and now the talk of ejecting players for those hits which has been a failure at the college level. Under the newest rules that just got implemented, quarterback sneaks will effectively be outlawed (good luck on 4th and 1, Tom) as will the RB diving for the goal line. That's absurd. All the while not eliminating brain injuries and causing a spike in lower body and knee injuries. So, in the future, these guys can walk around with their brains still scrambled while having the knees of Conrad Dobler. Sounds awesome.

Again, nothing is forcing these guys to play the game. They know what they're getting into and they know that their career could literally end on every single snap. They choose the life they're going to live. And if they, for whatever reason, do NOT know what they're signing up for, they need to be checked to see if they're on the spectrum.

 

[RayClay]

Banning kickoffs? What's next?

 

[patriot1136]

If they ban kickoffs, the sport as we know it is over. I like that the idea persists that we can make a violent sport non-violent. It's as if everyone forgets that these guys know what they're getting into, known that they can die on the field on literally every down, and still choose to take that risk. Maybe we should ban blocking or just outlaw line play altogether? After all, most of the helmet to helmet contact is initiated there. Maybe the defense can just execute the five second rule every play where they count to five before they rush into the offensive backfield?

We could just go all virtual and have the opposing players play Madden against each other. 11 on 11 Madden, each player controls themself. Either that or flag football.

 

[mgteich]

How do you think football fans nationwide would react to NFL's with an average of a touchdown more for each team. Would there be an uproar with the NFL losing attendance and TV audience? If course not!

 

[GoBlue]

Maybe they could just televise Madden Football every Sunday and let people bet on that.

 

[QuantumMechanic]

IMHO, this is a relatively straightforward issue. If concussions aren't greatly reduced, and continued efforts made to make the sport safer, then high schools and colleges will start dropping football. Parents will stop allowing their kids to play Pop Warner. The situation really is that simple.

I think the turning point, if it comes, will actually be insurance companies. When/if insurance companies stop being willing to write municipal liability policies, or liability policies for kids' leagues that cover football (or have really high premiums to cover it), that'll be that.

Or, alternatively, the first time the family of some highschooler who tests positive for CTE (either after death or in life once they have a reliable test for it) sues Pop Warner and his school and wins.

 

[Joey007]

Banning kickoffs? What's next?

Truly sexist.

Cheerleaders should represent all 47 genders! Not just two of them!

 

[JarOfMayo51]

* Ban kickoffs ... check.
* Make tackling impossible ... check.
* Make the receiver touching a pass a catch ... check.
* Make football scores look like basketball scores ... check.
* Build sideline stadium lounges for millennials to drink light beer and play with their smartphones ... check.

Agreed, except I would bet large sums of money that the lounge area is frequented by older generations more so than millenials.. most millenials probably aren't earning the kind of coin it takes to have season tickets to the optum lounge

 

[Tunescribe]

Agreed, except I would bet large sums of money that the lounge area is frequented by older generations more so than millenials.. most millenials probably aren't earning the kind of coin it takes to have season tickets to the optum lounge

Nah, it's the millennial scourge that initiated this stadium lounge phenomenon. Looking down through my binoculars they're all drinking light beer and looking at their smartphones. (My seats are in the mezzanine kitty corner from the Optum Lounge and my binocs are mighty powerful. A lot of them still sport post-adolescent acne.)

 

[TheRainMaker]

I think the turning point, if it comes, will actually be insurance companies. When/if insurance companies stop being willing to write municipal liability policies, or liability policies for kids' leagues that cover football (or have really high premiums to cover it), that'll be that.

Or, alternatively, the first time the family of some highschooler who tests positive for CTE (either after death or in life once they have a reliable test for it) sues Pop Warner and his school and wins.

Good point. As much as I love football, I wouldn't want my son anywhere near football unless he wanted to be a punter or kicker.

 

[Kontradiction]

Agreed, except I would bet large sums of money that the lounge area is frequented by older generations more so than millenials.. most millenials probably aren't earning the kind of coin it takes to have season tickets to the optum lounge

It depends on when they were born. Millennials my age make very good coin (if they graduated from college) and many probably don’t have children yet. So they just have student loans and normal bills. They more than likely have the money to spend.

 

[Steve102]

Good point. As much as I love football, I wouldn't want my son anywhere near football unless he wanted to be a punter or kicker.

This is a huge problem. I coach HS football in NH. Numbers are down, parents hand wring about injuries, and everywhere you can read/watch about CTE and other issues. It's a big problem, and it's not going away. My son played his entire career, 2nd grade thru all 4 years in high school, without a major injury. He's in the majority. However, you can't tell all the mums in the stands that little Johnny won't get hurt, when the TV is telling her otherwise.

The sport is under attack. We can teach proper techniques, and try to keep the kids safe, but it's not going to change how people like this poster feel about it.

 

[Kontradiction]

This is a huge problem. I coach HS football in NH. Numbers are down, parents hand wring about injuries, and everywhere you can read/watch about CTE and other issues. It's a big problem, and it's not going away. My son played his entire career, 2nd grade thru all 4 years in high school, without a major injury. He's in the majority. However, you can't tell all the mums in the stands that little Johnny won't get hurt, when the TV is telling her otherwise.

The sport is under attack. We can teach proper techniques, and try to keep the kids safe, but it's not going to change how people like this poster feel about it.

I doubt this will have much of an effect in the poorer rural areas and inner cities. That's where the cream of the crop talent comes from. But yes, it will have an overall effect.

 

[Steve102]

I doubt this will have much of an effect in the poorer rural areas and inner cities. That's where the cream of the crop talent comes from. But yes, it will have an overall effect.

I'm more concerned about my own numbers, but yeah.

 

[Kontradiction]

I'm more concerned about my own numbers, but yeah.

I honestly don't think I'll let my kids play football. There were times when I would get popped coming over the middle and didn't remember the rest of the game. One time it was so bad that I was vomiting for a day or two afterward. I shudder to think of all the brain trauma I endured.

 

[Deus Irae]

I honestly don't think I'll let my kids play football. There were times when I would get popped coming over the middle and didn't remember the rest of the game. One time it was so bad that I was vomiting for a day or two afterward. I shudder to think of all the brain trauma I endured.

Even the most violent sports were safer than a lot of our non-sports activities when my friends and I were kids. My parents probably lived to hear what must have sounded like "We're going to go beat the **** out of each other playing football" instead of "We're going to have our standard non-sports afternoon, so keep an ear out for ambulances, because they're probably coming for one of us."

 

[Steve102]

I honestly don't think I'll let my kids play football. There were times when I would get popped coming over the middle and didn't remember the rest of the game. One time it was so bad that I was vomiting for a day or two afterward. I shudder to think of all the brain trauma I endured.

you're not alone. Lots of parents feel that way.