Posted on 02/13/2007 8:01:15 AM PST by EveningStar
Retired NFL players discovers football was bad for their bodies. What were they expecting?
(Excerpt) Read more at opinionjournal.com ...
Oh boy, another person who replies with personal attacks to people who disagree with his topic. Can I play too?
How about, sure, I may have been picked last for the gym class, but at least I wasn't prancing about in a pink tutu in the ballet class like you were.
Now, back to the issue at hand.
... Mr. Dobler is a textbook case. He was a three-time Pro Bowler who played 10 seasons in the NFL from 1972 to 1981. There's no denying that his knees are destroyed, and after many operations he manages to hobble around at best. He said he takes about 150 Vicodin a month to dull the pain...
Okay, he is injured.
... But anyone who remembers Mr. Dobler from his playing days will have little sympathy for him...
Now why is that? ... "Conrad Dobler was a pit bull without a leash on the field," ESPN wrote when fans voted him No. 6 among the dirtiest players of all time. "He didn't care who he hurt, how he hurt, and who saw him hurt. He even went as far to write a book called 'They Call Me Dirty' to proclaim he didn't have a care about anyone's health." ...
Oh. That's why.
Its sort of like feeling sorry for the bully who hit you in the face every day as he stole your lunch. Gee, I am sorry mister bully that your hand now hurts from all the times you hit me.
Or this example.
... Mr. Dobler isn't alone. Oakland Raiders defensive back Jack Tatum is unapologetic to this day for a 1978 hit that paralyzed New England Patriots wide receiver Darryl Stingley...
Ouch. So now we are supposed to have sympathy for Mr. Tatum but not Mr. Stingley.
and what about this?
... Mr. Johnson certainly did that. He admits that he continued to play, even though he knew he was suffering from repeated concussions. Furthermore, he didn't tell Patriots coaches or trainers about his recurring injuries for fear that he would lose his starting job (and starting salary). Amazingly, these self-incriminating facts haven't kept Mr. Johnson from blaming Patriots coach Bill Belichick and the team medical staff for his long-term ailments. But if the Patriots didn't know that he was hurt, how can he blame them for continuing to play him? ...
Sounds more like self inflicted injuries to me for the most part.
I don't care and I have no sympathy for them.
Since you hate all athletes did you go to We are Marshall and cheer the plane crash?
They are asking the NFL and the NFLPA for help. Not you or me. That's my point.
They made the profits for the NFL and that's who they are asking for help.
So you cheered the crash in We Are Marshall?
You are completely missing the point.
And they are not asking you or me for a thing. They are asking for help from the NFL and the NFLPA which they helped build.
I realize you hate all athletes but they basically are the players who made the NFL and the NFLPA what they are today.
They have billions.
I must've missed the part where they were hunted down and forced at gunpoint to play football for a living.
AS do most actors and actresses.
IN some ways it is. There are documented cases of withheld information and half truths given to players to get them out on the field early.
You'd enjoy We Are MArshall. Big group of athletes killed in a plane crash for you to cheer.
"Another picked last in gym class huh?"
I had the same thought.
I compete in strong-man competitions (throwing logs and the like) and get constant lip from little twirps who assume that this MIT engineer is an idiot jock.
They pursued what they loved and were told they would be taken care of.
They made the NFL what it is today and are asking today's players to help them out.
They aren't asking you or me to help them out.
Go watch We Are Marshall a lot of athletes die in it and you'd be able to cheer that.
One of the Cubs came out publicly and supported the war.
An idiot on the radio called him an idiot jock.
I called in and said "Mark Prior has a degree from USC and is going to Northwestern for his masters. What does Martin Sheen etc have?"
I guess Mr. dleecomeback07 has to have a "Lighten up, Francis" moment
I'd have a problem if they were asking the government for help like most groups of people.
They are asking the people who their hard work benefited.
I have nothing against athletes so you can stop using that ridiculous crutch.
These are people who made decisions in their lives and now won't face the consequences, I have no sympathy for that. They made their bed and now want someone else to lie in it.
Gee, fella, I don't get you. If this was any other entity than professiona football, would you feel the same?
How about boxing, do the enterprises which hired them be expected to do the same for the down and out boxers?
Are you among those who feel the illegal drug smuggler who was shot in the butt deserves 5 million from the USA?
When are we going to wake up to the fact that we are responsible for the consequences of our own choices?
The buck stops with you and what you do with it or do to get it is all yours.
Maybe giant people produced by steroids has a little bit to do with it. Maybe even just the steroids cause a lot of the long term damage.
So when is it the NFL's responsibility to look after the well-being of adults who want to live for the moment rather than plan for life after football?
You forgot that they were forced because they are victims.
I wish in a few cases the NFL would change the rules to make the game a little safer for its players. Some of the rules could be changed without making the game less enjoyable.
For example:
1. Ban all chop blocks. Right now, it's legal between the tackles.
2. Enforce a ban on leading with the helmet when tackling.
3. The college rule is that the snapper has to be given that half-second to position himself before he can be hit. Adopt that rule for the pros.
They could also Look into improving the helmets. A few players, such as the 49ers Steve Wallace, put styrofoam padding over their helmets. It's unclear whether that helped, but some kind of mandatory padding on all helmets might make the game safer. It's worth checking out.
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