Tonight, there is an ESPN special that details how Tom Brady was not taken until the 6th round of the 2000 NFL draft and went on to be a superstar. In footage seen here he chokes up for over 10 seconds as he recalls his family’s support as he struggled with the prospect that he might not be drafted. What has surprised me is the number of fans and media members taking shots at Brady for being a “sissy” and other more offensive terms for shedding a tear and getting emotional. Brady is without question one of the best quaterbacks to ever play the game and as tough as they come but he can’t get choked up when describing one of the toughest obstacles he had to overcome? I thought we had come a little further than that…
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Football and Concussions
Finally, it appears that the NFL Is getting serious about concussions. The hope is that the example set by the NFL will trickle down to college and the pros. Too often, young men and teens have felt pressure to conceal symptoms of a concussion for fear they will look weak or will be asking out of a game. Players have learned that the need to “suck it up” and get back on the field. Further, concussions used to be minimized by coaches referring to the injury as getting “dinged in the head.” Concussions can have serious and long term neurological consequences and football players at all levels need to be aware of the symptoms and mandated to sit out if they experience a concussion. Football is a violent sport with inherent risks, but there is no need to jeopardize the health of young men by ignoring or minimizing the risk of concussion.
Walking the Walk
In a suburb of Boston a football coach and a father got into a fight over whether his son should run laps after he was late due to father’s fault: http://bit.ly/3WMshv
The most disappointing part of this story in my opinion is that in front of these boys to grown men arranged to get into a fistfight to resolve their dispute. I am sure these boys will hear talks from coaches, school administrators and messages from the media about sportsmanship and conflict resolution. Unfortunately, these boys witnessed a prime example of “do as I say not what I do.” Even as I type this the Broncos and Chargers are getting into a tussle on the field before their nationally televised game. Messages about violence prevention sound hollow until we as adult back them up with our actions. Hopefully this incident can serve as a reminder.