So I've pretty much had it with the National Football League (or Nanny Foo-foo League as I believe it's becoming) with all these rule changes in order to protect players. The final straw for me came when I heard Commissioner Roger Goodell was considering eliminating the 3-point stance in order to decrease the number of concussions at the line of scrimmage.
What happened to the game I pour my heart into every year? It's like it isn't even a contact sport anymore. They might as well get rid of the pads and we can watch them play touch or flag football at this point.
I mean, I'm all for protecting players, but you have to draw a line somewhere. There's a reason they pay these guys the big bucks. Football wouldn't be the same without big hits and full-on contact.
Players know what they're getting into when they play the game of football. Anyone could be injured at any point and it could be something as small as a bruise, or something like what happened to former Buffalo Bills tight end Kevin Everett when he almost became paralyzed. If players don't want to risk injury, they shouldn't play the game.
If Goodell wants to worry less about the effects of concussions on players in regards to when they should come back or want to come back, he should have them sign some sort of waiver. This waiver would state that the player wants to play and should anything concussion related happen during the game, such as another concussion, or God forbid something worse, the player is the sole person responsible and could not bring any type of action against the league.
Not only would this rule change affect professional football, but then college, high school, and pee wee football would have to follow suit, ruining football as we know it. Professional scouts would have trouble figuring out whether a college player could play out of a 2-point stance at the professional level, and the same would go for a college scout for a high schooler, so there's a definite trickle-down effect if the rule is changed.
In the end, it would completely ruin my favorite sport. There would be no way I could watch the games. Not only that, but I think it would be the demise of this country's most popular sport. I think there would definitely be some sort of uproar if the rule were to go through and people would stop watching. This would then leave nothing to entertain us in the sporting world between the World Series and college basketball.
It will be a very sad day in the world of football if that change ever comes to pass. It depresses me just thinking it's a possibility. So please, Goodell, don't ruin the only reason I can manage to make it through the winter.
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