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Jordan Coghill
Ms. Jizi
UWRT 1102-009
6 April 2016
Concussions in Football leading to Brain Disease
I have always wondered how football players were able to sustain hit after hit after hit. I
thought that they were all some sort of super human up until recently. I was watching the
Panthers play in the Super Bowl and during one of the numerous commercial breaks, a movie
titled Concussion was being advertised. In this advertisement the commissioner of the NFL,
Roger Goodell, was made to seem insensitive on the issue of concussions in the NFL. The
makers of this advertisement tried to advertise this as much as possible so why not make a
commercial about football players getting injured and broadcast it during one of the most
watched sporting events in the world? After seeing this commercial I started to think if I had
heard of this issue in the past. A couple years ago, I remember a famous retired football player by
the name of Junior Seau took his own life. This event sent a ripple through the sports world. It
was later revealed that his brain had evidence of CTE and this could have lead to him
committing suicide. (Carroll) After researching this issue, I found daunting numbers and
evidence that supports the idea that concussions in football leads to brain disease.
First of all, CTE affects everyone around it. Whether that is former teammates, friends or
family. It deals a detrimental blow to everyone who is close to it. Protectthebrain.org

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describes CTE as being a condition that is usually found in boxers. CTE, Chronic Traumatic
Encephalopathy, is a disease that is caused by repetitive blows to the head and/or traumatic
brain injuries. A brain that suffers from chronic traumatic encephalopathy ends up losing mass
because it deteriorates over time. Some areas of the affected brain accumulate tau protein,
which is a substance that stabilizes cellular structure which can lead to major interference with
the function of neurons. (What is CTE?) All of these symptoms and consequences can be
avoided if the proper cautionary measures are taken. The NFL can put in some sort of
mechanism or technique to spot whether or not a player has been dealt a blow to the head. My
question is, Do concussions in football lead to brain disease? I feel like this question is
important because if it is left unanswered, then former, current, and future football players will
not know if the sport they played, play or want to play is dangerous to their well-being.
Overall, there have been numerous contributors to this argument about whether or not
concussions in football lead to brain damage. There is one article I found online that I felt
provided crucial facts to this specific argument. Julie Beck, an author for The Atlantic, wrote an
article that was titled, The NFLs Continuing Concussion Nightmare. In this article, there is
crucial evidence that points to the correlation between concussions and brain disorders. New
research on deceased football players brains found high rates of CTE, a disease that is believed
to stem from repetitive brain injuries. (Beck) She makes a huge contribution with the following
quotes. The Department of Veteran Affairs & Boston University, studied brains of 165 people
who had played in football in high school, college, or professionally. CTE was found in 131 of
them, (79%). 91 of the original 165 belonged to
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former NFL players, and 87 of the 91 had signs of CTE. (Beck) Her statistical references link
up perfectly with my research topic. The facts that she presented about the large
percentage of former NFL players brains showing signs of CTE, is enormous. Other questions
that have come to my mind after reading other articles and hearing
other peoples voices are, what can be done to lower the risk? I know that the NFL has attempted
to take some sort of precautionary measure but I believe that there has to be a way the cut down
the risk of head injury in the NFL which would eventually lead to the lowering of the rate of
CTE in former players brains.
Another voice that was quite convincing to me was the voice behind an article titled
Alzheimers and Dementia Weekly. The main reason that this article caught my attention was
because they did not just point at the NFL, they referred to it as Professional sports teams. I
know my paper is talking about concussions in football leading to brain disorders but it was kind
of refreshing to see an article that was not blasting the NFL and only the NFL, as well as talking
about the risk of repetitive brain injuries. In this article they described and explained what a
concussions were and how to prevent such injuries. I think that the NFL should make their
trainers or whoever looks for head injuries, sit down and read up on what a concussion is. I am
sure that everyone of them knows what a concussion is but if they read up on them and searched
for new ways to spot them, then maybe the concussion rate in the NFL could be lowered by a
decent amount. Dr. Maryse Lassonde stated, Even when your brain is symptom-free, your brain
may still not be back to normal. (Alzheimers and Dementia Weekly) Even that short yet
powerful statement could make a concussion spotter be more
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careful when allowing a player to go bac into the game if he had previously been dealt a blow to
the head. If I could add anything to this conversation, I would just say to the trainers and
spotters, be careful and precise. I would say this because if they clear a player to go back into the
game that shouldnt be, that person could get severely injured. And if they do get severely
injured or even die, its not just a player in an organization that dies, it is someone son or father or
brother. The executives in the NFL need to think outside of the box because these families are
giving them their loved ones and they are not being protected correctly in my opinion.
My discoveries that I found during my research opened my eyes to the severity of the
injuries that football players have to endure. I had no idea how much danger they put themselves
into by simply playing a sport. It should make my readers appreciate what these players are
sacrificing for us to watch them play football. I still am curious about what precautionary
measures the NFL will take in the future. If they do not make an attempt to protect their players
in the next couple years then I predict there will be a lockout like the NBA had a few years ago
but the issue this time wont be financial. The only question that I feel is unresolved is how long
it takes CTE to begin to show signs. If it shows signs early on then doctors should be able to
identify it and attempt to protect the person that has shown signs of this deadly disease.

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Works Cited

"Alzheimer's & Dementia Weekly." : Concussion Leads to Dementia If Neglected. N.p.,

24 Mar. 2016. Web. 03 Apr. 2016.
Beck, Julie. "The NFL's Continuing Concussion Nightmare." The Atlantic. Atlantic
Media Company, 21 Sept. 2015. Web. 03 Apr. 2016.
Carroll, Jane, Blake McCoy, and Jane Derenowski. "'Concussion' Shines Light on
Brain Injuries and Football." NBC News. NBC, 27 Dec. 2015. Web. 03 Apr. 2016.
Miller, Michael Craig. "Commentary. Concussions in Football." (Article, 2010) [UNC
Charlotte Libraries]. N.p., 1 Jan. 2010. Web. 03 Apr. 2016.
"What Is CTE?" Protect The Brain. BIRI, n.d. Web. 03 Apr. 2016.