Improvements in diagnostic technology have provided substantial evidence to link severe—and
often fatal—psychological disorders to the head injuries that players receive while on the field. Recent
autopsies performed on the brains of football players who have committed suicide have shown advanced
cases of CTE in every single victim.
In response to the growing understanding of this danger, the National Football League (NFL) has revised
its safety regulations. Players who have suffered a head injury on the field must undergo a “concussion
sideline assessment”—a series of mental and physical fitness tests—before being allowed back in the
game. In an effort to diminish the amount of head and neck injuries on the field, NFL officials began
enforcing stricter penalty calls for helmet-to-helmet contact, leading with the head, and hitting a
defenseless player. Furthermore, as of 2010, if a player’s helmet is accidentally wrenched from his head
during play, the ball is immediately whistled dead. It is hoped that these new regulations, coupled with
advances in helmet design, will reduce the number of concussions, and thus curb further cases of CTE.
Efforts by the NFL and other professional sports leagues are certainly laudable; we should
commend every attempt to protect the mental and physical health of players. However, new regulations at
the professional level cannot protect amateur players, especially young people. Fatal cases of CTE have
been reported in victims as young as 21. Proper tackling form—using the arms and shoulders to aim for a
player’s midsection—should be taught at an early age. Youth, high school, and college leagues should
also adopt safety rules even more stringent than those of the NFL. Furthermore, young athletes should be
educated about the serious dangers of head injuries at an early age