The Deciding Factors
The Public Religion Research Institute has been tracking America's opinion of the game of football for years. Over the last decade there has been a great deal of research done on concussions that correlate to playing football. The organization recently conducted a study surveying 1,009 American adults. At the end of the day the parents of children are the deciding factor as to whether their kids will participate. That being said, the study shows that 31 percent of Americans would not allow their young son or daughter to play football. Last year the exact survey was conducted, and showed that 22 percent would not allowed their children to play the game. From the year 2015-2016 the organizations studying has increased almost 10%. Furthermore, the opinion of adults in America has shifted dramatically over the course of just two years.
Even though roughly 10% of parents say they would not let their children play football, there has been increasing numbers of youth football participation. According to ESPN writer Tom Farrey every year something new comes about concerning health related issues. The brain is the most talked about typically. "Football leaders finally have good news to celebrate: a modest, one-year jump in the number of children playing the game." In 2015, 1.23 million youth ages 6-12 played tackle football. That number increased from the prior year of 1.216 million according to data from Sports & Fitness Industry Association.
Flag football within that same age group also saw a jump in participation, from 1.086 million to 1.142 million.
URL for video below:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BZ-_VhdCRDM
|
Former player in the National Football League Thomas Jones talks about his lively hood being surrounded by football. His entire family played the game. He speaks about "those clichés we always hear" and how football has guided his understanding of them. "Work hard, never give up, hard work pays off."
That being said, Jones does not feel comfortable letting his future children play football. Between the concussions and the discovery of Chronic Traumatic Encephalopathy Jones believes that there is a lot more to live for than just football. Football is the way he earned his glory and successful. “It’s not worth that. There are a lot of different ways you can be successful besides football. "He is confident that his children will be able to find different ways to be just as accomplished as he was. Thomas Jones is not the only NFL player who feels this way about football. Former NFL star, and future hall of fame quarterback Brett Favre agrees with Jones stating that he would not let his child play the game. Favre spent 20 years in the National Football League, and during that time took thousands of brutal hits. “It’s a violent sport, and for two reasons I don’t know if I’d let him play." “The pressures to, you know, live up to what your dad had done, but most importantly the damage that is done by playing. I don’t know if I would let him play.” Later, in the interview done by Mississippi's WDAM Brett directed his attention more towards the mental aspects of the game and what he faces today. "I think to me the wakeup call was (wife) Deanna and I were talking recently, and she was talking about Breleigh, our youngest, playing soccer," Favre said last fall. "I've pretty much made every game that she's ever played in basketball, volleyball. She played softball one year; she played basketball a couple years. As I find out, she played soccer. I don't remember her playing soccer. She played right over here, and that was probably where my first inclination that something ain't right." |
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4bMOMf3S_EA
Football rules have changed and technical changes have been made, but those rules have only been inflicted in the National Football League. The equipment is advancing. VICIS- " We're developing new football helmet technology with Zero1 that is showing significant reduction in impact forces. We are using our expertise in medicine and engineers to protect young athletes. That, and our love of the game, is what drives us."
Football rules have changed and technical changes have been made, but those rules have only been inflicted in the National Football League. The equipment is advancing. VICIS- " We're developing new football helmet technology with Zero1 that is showing significant reduction in impact forces. We are using our expertise in medicine and engineers to protect young athletes. That, and our love of the game, is what drives us."