Opinion | Football Is Deadly, But Not Why You Think

Opinion | Football Is Deadly, But Not Why You Think

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But as alarming as his injuries were, there are secondary risks associated with this horrific incident. Rather than focusing on the chronic medical condition that poses the greatest danger to the player, we focus on the single dramatic outlier.

According to the National Commotio Cordis Registry, there are an estimated 15 to 20 cases per year nationwide when a fast-moving projectile connects to an unprotected chest, usually in sports such as baseball and hockey. In football, where players wear a lot of padding, events like this are so rare at the NFL level that they probably won’t happen again in our lifetimes. The long-term effects of brain damage have robbed countless players of their health, well-being, and even their lives, but because it occurs off-camera, it doesn’t receive the same medical or cultural attention. Is not.

Hours before Monday night’s game, we learned that former NFL offensive lineman Uche Nwaneri, who started 92 games as a guard and center for the Jacksonville Jaguars, died of a heart attack at the age of 38. Uche and I were messaging back and forth on his Twitter. On our shared concerns about concussions and chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE). He had a following and called himself an Observant Lineman. He has his wife Michele and his two young daughters.

Young former NFL players, mostly linemen, die of heart attacks or heart disease almost every year. In addition to Uche, Shane Olivea died in March at the age of 40. Max Tuerk died in 2020 when he was 26 years old. Taylor Whitley is 2018 and he is 38 years old. Jeremy Nunley is 2018 and he is 46 years old. Nate Hobgood-Chittick is 2017 and he is 42 years old. Rodrick Monroe, 2017, 40, Ron Brace, 29, 2016 Quenting Loebs, 2016, 32, Damion Cook, 36, 2015, Majors has been cited as a more underlying or contributing cause of death than any baseball player in his league.

Scientists believe NFL players are at higher risk of heart disease because they gain weight. Once a player retires, it is very difficult to lose weight from football due to chronic pain from injuries sustained while playing. (From the age of 25 to his 39-year-old NFL player has about three times the arthritis rate of the general public.) The untimely death of these men is a tragedy for loved ones, friends and former teammates. But the public was largely unaware.

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