Why did the NFL create a committee in response to brain trauma incidents?
Chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE) is a serious issue in the NFL (National Football League) that has been brought to light due to suicides, murders, and even cries for help from current or former NFL players. As a result, brain trauma incidents in the NFL have been a hot topic for a number of years now.
In 2005, Bennet Omalu released a paper entitled “CTE in a National Football League player” which highlighted that CTE was in fact present in a football player’s brain. In 2006, the NFL’s ‘mild traumatic brain injury committee (MTBI) asked for the paper to be taken down.
In March 2007, the MTBI presented conclusions denying that head injury is in fact linked to long-term brain damage, depression, dementia, or any other serious brain disorder. And that any information or research reporting otherwise was “virtually worthless”.
The ‘research’ carried out by the MTBI was virtually worthless, and was simply an attempt to maintain the NFL’s image.
To better understand CTE, let’s take a look at some example of how it’s impacted the lives of NFL players:
1. Former NFL safety Dave Duerson took his own life in 2011, but he opted to shoot himself in the chest rather than the head so doctor’s could examine his brain. They later confirmed he had CTE.
2. Former NFL player Phillip Adam who fatally shot six people before taking his own life had “unusually severe” stage 2 CTE.
3. And according to a 2017 study on brain of deceased gridrion football players, 99% of them had various stages of CTE.
The league is beginning to do more, with better safety equipment, neurologists being put on NFL teams, and video games are even doing their bit to address concussions and head injuries. But nonetheless, it’s still hugely disappointing that the NFL didn’t take this seriously for a long period of time, and attempted to sweep it under the carpet.