Who Is The Real Enemy?

The easy target for the ‘pussification’ of the NFL over the past several years has been Roger Goodell, which makes sense. He’s the face of the league office, which has instituted all of the rule changes and taken the disciplinary measures to “try and make the game saferâ€.

However, is Goodell and the league office really your enemy? Let’s think about this….. why would the league purposely make their sport less entertaining? The violence of the sport is what attracts many fans, right? So, why would the league seemingly bite off their own nose to spite their face?

They wouldn’t. The pussification of your sport is NOT being created by Goodell and his cronies. The pussification of the sport is being caused by all of the ex-players suing the league left and right for their life-long health problems. Because the league never had these ex-players sign air-tight health waivers, they are now coming back many years later ‘claiming’ they didn’t know the health risks involved in the sport.

What’s truly amazing about what’s going on is not only are we as fans blaming Goodell, when it’s actually the ex-players creating all of this, there are very few people even questioning the honesty and truthfulness of these ex-players. We’re seriously supposed to believe they didn’t know the sport of football was violent and creates health risks for its’ players? Huh? Why is no one really questioning the honesty of these players? Why are we buying this?

For a personal analogy, in 1983, when I was 13 years old, it was discovered that I had extensive scar tissue in a portion of my brain from some sort of injury that may or may not have been sports-related. But because of that, I could not pass my physical to play high school football. Yet ALL of these ex-players are claiming they had no idea of the health risks associated with the sport? Apparently my doctor was just ahead of his time by 30 years and no other doctors knew about the head trauma risks back in the 70’s and 80’s?

So, for all of you that love to hate Goodell, go ahead and keep hating but let’s be very clear. HE is absolutely NOT the one pussifying your sport. Guys like Randy White, Bob Lilly, Curt Warner, Mark Rypien, Tony Dorsett, Lomas Brown, Alex Karras, and the hundreds of ex-players suing the NFL are to blame for your sport being pussified.

 

You know.. I never thought of it like that. I think you have a very valid point. It also looks like you are picking on my Cowboys.. Dorsett, Lilly and White... rod

 

didn't mean to pick on the boys........ those are just some of the 'big' names.......... i think the list is now about 1500 ex-players that have joined in the fun of taking down an entire sport.

i suppose the best we can hope for is that the players lose every single one of these lawsuits (there are multiple ones going on in multiple states). That may give the league an opportunity to then come up with a health waiver system and the game won't be completely destroyed.

however, if these players start winning some of these lawsuits, the sport is in big trouble. look for tons of lawsuits to spring up not only in the NFL, but also arena football, college football, high school football, and even pop warner. The domino effect is going to be severe and long-lasting.

insurance companies will bail on the sport. coaches will bail (because they don't want to get sued). severe, drastic rule changes will be implemented at every level (no touching of a helmet at all. no touching a qb. tackles can't be too 'hard', etc.). entire programs at every level of the sport will be completely eliminated.

this is a serious issue for anyone who follows and loves the sport and it just doesn't seem to be getting much attention other than a passing story here and there.

 

I agree.. I was just busting your balls. To be honest I never really thought of it the way you put it. And it totally makes sense. Why would the NFL pussify the league and lose fans and money? I mean honestly, they really don't give two craps about the players, cause at the end of the day they are making millions to play a game. So I say.. Carry on sir

 

With the apparent suicide of Junior Seau, I don't think this is going to go away very soon.

 

i agree that former players are hurting it but i dont blame goodell, i blame bill polian

What Polian did was done to try and force his crappy system to win a title. Which he got. One of. In a decade of doing nothing but making the playoffs. After a doing the same damn thing in the early 90s in Buffalo.

His system was terrible and he use his position on the competition committee to force it on the league. Now you brush a receiver 6 yards down the field on 3rd and 25 and it's a first down.

It's a travesty, and I'm glad to see him lose his job even if it's a few years too late.

While the scar Polian left on football may never be healed, it would be nice to see a swing in the pendulum back towards the middle.

The rules will probably never be undone but seeing some equalizing rules to take the ridiculous advantages away would be nice. Maybe like some of the blame for helmet to helmet collisions being put on offensive players who lower their heads to fight for extra yards

former players are to blame for like extra waivers and extra efforts to protect players (by mean of like new design in helmets, new protocol for concussed players to get clear...ect)

Roger goodell is to blame for being a rod and abusing his power as commissioner

and bill polian is to blame for turning the NFL into a cat league

 

well, i'm not talking about the coverage rules that were made to open up the passing games.

i'm talking about james harrison getting fined/suspended for breathing on qb's or ryan clark getting fined/suspended for tackling a 'defenseless' receiver or kickoffs getting eliminated ........ these things are coming from the lawsuits.

The league has known these were coming for a while but the everyday fans got it in their minds that it was Goodell and the league office just being a bunch of power-hungry buttholes and that's just not the case. They're just trying to cover their asses and show good faith (although it doesn't seem to be doing any good) in the face of these multiple lawsuits.

 

oh i understood, its an overall pussification though...cant just put it on one thing, i think a lot of these rules were easy to stem off of the polian rules. just made it an easier transistion for them to make

 

Screwin' TRUTH. Every time someone snitches or boos Goodell for this, I say 'why?'. He has no damn choice but to implement these rules.

And it's such a crock of horsecrap, too. Guess what? Play football, YOU MIGHT GET FREAKING HURT. Not a mystery here. That's why you and all of your fellow NFL brethren were paid a premium salary over the common man. You played a game that involves great risk and got paid well for it.

The NFL should not have to fork over one single dime for post career issues. The individual teams should be on the hook for a player that gets injured during any part of a season and should compensate for the year they were injured and everything required to rehab and bring that player as close to 100%... but at the end of the day, it's a privilege to play the game and make hundreds of thousands/millions of dollars to do so. You take that risk when you cash your big butt paycheck and step on the field.

You don't like the risk? Go be an accountant. Go be a travel agent. Go flip some freaking burgers for all I care.

 

I do agree that all the angst and legal threats by the ex-players definitely has something to do with how Roger and the NFL has been handling certain things since he took over, especially recently.

I'll say this much, and I don't mean for it to sound cold especially in light of Junior Seau's suicide this week, but people do get depressed and commit suicide without having concussions. I mean depression is a thing that effects EVERYONE in all walks of life from the richest of the rich to the poorest of the poor. So to focus on football players only and say the concussions and brain damage is the root cause...I dunno, how many guys back in the leather helmet days killed themselves? I think for the modern era player the loss of that fame & attention in the post-career period (along with possibly the loss of income unless they become broadcasters or coaches), that has to play a role in the depression too. There is a reason pro athletes get emotional when they announce a retirement and I don't think it is because of brain damage. It is a tough transition I would have to think. And that isn't to say concussions & all of that are a non-factor, but now it just feels like anything bad that happens to a retired NFL player, first thing people will point to is concussions and brain studies and so on. I think it is a more complex issue that that.

 

[ame="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vfngX-Z0lkA&feature=fvst"]Green Day-Know your enemy (lyrics in description) - YouTube[/ame]

 

I agree completely with you guys and I honestly couldn't put it any better the bigsexy. In all honesty when you sign that fat butt contract to play football, you're getting paid a whole lot of money to put your body and your brain on the line because it's a freaking contact sport and you might freaking get hurt because you're gonna get hit. The fact that former NFL players are suing the NFL over these health problems they're having is disgusting to me. Are they seriously acting like they didn't know the risks of taking a hit to the head full speed from another grown man? Bullcrap, this entire thing is bullcrap, and if you don't want to get hurt or have future health problems don't freaking play the game. In the mean time you're getting paid millions and millions of dollars to play a game you guys supposedly love, so suck it the heck up and quit your snitching.

 

^^Amen. Preach the truth brothers.

 

Good post, this made me think of some math that would be fun to try.

Let's add up the tens or hundreds of thousands of football that ever played the game for at least three years (for argument's sake, we'll say if they played in the NFL for three seasons, they likely had some concussions).

Lets then add up how many players are having psychiatric issues as a result of concussions.

I'm certain we'd find the percentage minute.

 

Osi Umeniyora twittered today, “Its an awesome game and has done a lot for me, but i know when im 45 there is a strong chance il be in a wheelchair." ............. the amazing part is he'll probably sue the league when he's 45 for his health problems.

the thing is, most of these ex-players that are now suing the league said the exact same types of things when they were playing. I would hope the NFL lawyers are digging up similar quotes from these ex-players when they played to completely discredit their alleged 'ignorance' of the health risks associated with football.

 

I wonder if football, be it college or NFL, will even be around in the next 20 to 30 years.

 

this crap is getting SO RIDICULOUS.

Stop playing the game then, cocksucker.

 

@OsiUmenyiora Stop playing then. Right now. Take all of your millions and do something else. Problem solved.

 

If you don't want to be in a wheelchair at 45 then stop playing the game....It's that simple take your millions and invest them. OH WAIT! You probably don't have any or even enough money left to live off for the rest of your life because you were stupid and irresponsible with it. I understand these guys are young, and in their 20's but honestly how many ex players are we seeing that owe money in child support, or owe money to the IRS. I have a question, HOW THE FREAK DO YOU SPEND ALL THE MILLIONS YOU MAKE IN A MATTER OF A YEAR!!!!

 

Something that is lost in all this bullcrap is how many concussions did they suffer in Jr. High and High school? crap catches up with you. BTW, why do you think boxers take so much time between fights? NFL'ers go back out after a series or a game.

They know the risks. I'd be surprised if every contract from here on out doesn't have some sort of waiver they have to sign.