OT: Are athletes really getting faster, better, stronger?

[BTTA]

Fascinating and illuminating Ted Talk from David Epstein. Relevant to, among many things, the ongoing debate about NFL players from bygone eras in comparison with today's.

 

[XLIX]

I’ll watch the video later but the answer is yes, they are bigger faster and stronger than they used to be. That’s why the concussion problem has only gotten worse and worse. F = mv^2 and both the m and the v has gotten larger and larger so the force of impact has increased correspondingly.

 

[Uptown]

Yes.

 

[maust]

Better, faster, stronger.
Due to inflation we may need to add some zeroes but..

 

[mgteich]

yes

 

[BaconGrundleCandy]

OP have you watched 4 seconds of sports ... ever?

Also ... At least Kontra gave us a poll.

 

[VectorPrime]

If you took NFL players from the 60s and put them in today’s game some of them would literally die.

 

[Jackson 2]

Yes.

 

[patriot1136]

human evolution in this case

 

[Patriot Missile]

Uh yeah, definitely. Just look at the combine of some of these defensive lineman. They are 40-100+pounds heavier and running as fast as half of the wr’s of other decades.

 

[Angelpats]

This trend will plateau and decline eventually as other areas of entertainment and injury concerns influence youths of tomorrow. Even youths of today are increasingly drawn towards gaming and computer literacy which doesn’t promote physical prowess.

 

[Palm Beach Pats Fan]

Ray Lewis killed a couple of guys, and the second one was bigger and faster than the first.

 

[scout]

Watched the video. The emphasis was on individual sport versus team sport. Possibly, if Jesse Owens had today's technology then he would have given Bolt a run for his money. I wish this guy would do an analysis on Bill Russell versus today's players as the emphasis is "yea but that was decades ago". Russell was an athletic freak. The speaker never mentioned football as there are no comparisons of yesterday's athletes.

 

[Patjew]

I’m in southern Cali currently and I just saw a picture of Michael Cooper from his playing days. He was a great player, especially on D, and looked like he just survived a famine.

So that’s not really an answer to the OP but it feels like he’d be broken in half playing these days.

Most athletes somehow look like linebackers these days. Compare Mike Trout to almost anyone in the 80s not roided up, for example.

 

[Deus Irae]

The advances in nutrition, technology, and training are where most of the differences lie, as opposed to the differences being in the people themselves. And people who want to argue against that can just look at today's players a few years after they retire. Hell, people understand it enough to be commenting on the seemingly shrinking body of Gronk.

 

[Tony2046]

Fascinating and illuminating Ted Talk from David Epstein. Relevant to, among many things, the ongoing debate about NFL players from bygone eras in comparison with today's.

Interesting. Thanks

 

[Tony2046]

Watched the video. The emphasis was on individual sport versus team sport. Possibly, if Jesse Owens had today's technology then he would have given Bolt a run for his money. I wish this guy would do an analysis on Bill Russell versus today's players as the emphasis is "yea but that was decades ago". Russell was an athletic freak. The speaker never mentioned football as there are no comparisons of yesterday's athletes.

Imagine watching the video and then responding. hahaha.

 

[Tony2046]

OP have you watched 4 seconds of sports ... ever?

Also ... At least Kontra gave us a poll.

Did you watch 4 seconds of the video posted? Haha..

 

[XLIX]

If you took NFL players from the 60s and put them in today’s game some of them would literally die.

They would be children against men. The worst team in today’s NFL (Arizona?) would wipe the floor with the 1966 GB Packers.

 

[Tony2046]

Epstein is not arguing that athletes have not gotten bigger or smaller rather the equipment, the nutrition, the science supporting the athletes have gotten better and the lure of a sport has attracted specific sized people to specific sports.