Report: Junior Seau Dead

[Todd Gack]

Originally Posted by WMR

I'm guessing when the study of his brain is completed, it will be revealed that he was living with significant brain damage from possibly hundreds of concussions over several decades of using his body like a missile. If this comes to pass, will those who have condemned him apologize or feel a little bit bad for saying what they said about him?

What about those folks who've had multiple concussions who didn't commit suicide? Should I say, "Congratulations! You didn't kill yourself and leave behind all of your crying family members and friends!"

[ervinsm84]

Being willing to take a politically incorrect and/or unpopular opinion doesn't validate an opinion anymore than any others. I'm sick of that reasoning being thrown around. But thanks for those willing to be so strong and and stand up in the face of all that is PC and tell us what suicide really is.

The nonsense in this thread that is mostly the result of ignorance and lack of education about what really goes on in a suicide is kinda disturbing, and some of that hate probably even plays a role in a lot of people with suicidal thoughts not getting the help when they should have at an early point bc it's such a taboo thing to talk about, admit to having thoughts of and so forth.

There's no way to quantify or verify this, but I'm pretty confident that there's not one person in here that doesn't have a family member or friend that at some point in their life had some serious suicidal thoughts. The problem is few of us probably ever knew about them going through that bc so few people are ever able to open up about that when they are having problems.

[Yachtzee]

Originally Posted by Chip R

I think if they do that, they either have to eliminate shoulder pads or design them somewhat differently so you don't have some 250 lb. linebacker leveling a ballcarrier who has a soft helmet or none at all. You think there are concussions now? If a ballcarrier - usually a QB - hits his head against the ground while being tackled, he's going to get his bell rung if he's wearing a soft helmet or none at all.

The NFL is a quarterback league. They are the big stars. More and more over the past decade the NFL has moved to protect the QB better. There are fans and others who complain about this. However, the NFL knows where their bread is buttered. The fewer star QBs there are, the worse it is for the NFL. Maybe they should go overboard to protect QBs. But let's say you eliminate he;mets or go to the soft ones except for the QBs. Let them wear the current type of helmets with one caveat: The QB cannot run beyond the line of scrimmage. That evens things up somehow for the defense and protects the QB from some of those hits.

I believe the article I read, I wish I could find it, said that the hard helmets were a major contributing factor to concussions because of the transfer of energy from the impact. It said that the soft helmets provide more cushion and less transfer of impact to the skull, whether it be helmet to helmet or helmet to ground impact. The suggestion was that the NFL go to less padding overall or go to softer padding, eliminating hard plastic in helmets, shoulder pads, etc.

I think if they went that way, it would certainly change the way the game is played. We'd have to get used to NFL football that more resembled rugby in the way players are tackled and blocked.

[Sea Ray]

The Press just won't let go of the concussion angle of this story but I don't see why they're ignoring some other equally possible causes for the suicides in the NFL.

How 'bout the possibility that players go from huge paychecks to nothing over night? Guys like Terrell Owens made over $70mill in the NFL but now he's broke. 78% of NFL players are broke 3 yrs after they retire so this is common

Another issue is the competition, adrenaline rush and adoration these players miss after they leave the football field?

I don't think it's much about concussions and the talk at ESPN of the NFL's morbid future is nuts.

[VottoFan54]

Originally Posted by Sea Ray

The Press just won't let go of the concussion angle of this story but I don't see why they're ignoring some other equally possible causes for the suicides in the NFL.

How 'bout the possibility that players go from huge paychecks to nothing over night? Guys like Terrell Owens made over $70mill in the NFL but now he's broke. 78% of NFL players are broke 3 yrs after they retire so this is common

Another issue is the competition, adrenaline rush and adoration these players miss after they leave the football field?

I don't think it's much about concussions and the talk at ESPN of the NFL's morbid future is nuts.

The other professional sports leagues have the same issues, right? What do their suicide rates look like?

You may be onto something, but you would think that NBA and MLB players would have that same problem. They all pretty much go from huge paychecks to very little income. Doesn't every league have players that are adored and then when they retire, they are pretty much forgotten?

[Sea Ray]

Originally Posted by VottoFan54

The other professional sports leagues have the same issues, right? What do their suicide rates look like?

You may be onto something, but you would think that NBA and MLB players would have that same problem. They all pretty much go from huge paychecks to very little income. Doesn't every league have players that are adored and then when they retire, they are pretty much forgotten?

Do the other leagues have 78% of its players destitute 2 or 3 yrs after they retire? I don't know. My impression is the avg NFL career is much shorter than the NBA and MLB

[VottoFan54]

Originally Posted by Sea Ray

Do the other leagues have 78% of its players destitute 2 or 3 yrs after they retire? I don't know. My impression is the avg NFL career is much shorter than the NBA and MLB

I guess it could have something to do with the length of career or the mentallity of a NFL player. I think the suicides are a result of concussions, but nothing is really proven either way. How is steriod testing in the NFL? Could they be a factor? (I am not suggesting that Seau used roids) There are so many variables, you can't really know what causes it without extensive research.

Sent from my LG-VS700

[Redsfaithful]

Terrell Owens isn't broke, he wants to pay less child support and alimony.

[Sea Ray]

Originally Posted by Redsfaithful

Terrell Owens isn't broke, he wants to pay less child support and alimony.

I'm sure he does want to pay less child support and alimony but he doesn't strike me as a wizard saving money either. In fact his efforts at hanging onto his football career indicates to me that he's desparate for money

[WMR]

http://content.usatoday.com/communit...e#.T7wE5tXoVmM

Wow... my guess was low.

[Todd Gack]

"In the 1990s, I did a concussion seminar. They said a Grade 3 concussion meant you were knocked out, and a Grade 1 meant you were seeing stars after a hit, which made me burst out in laughter," Plummer told the San Jose Mercury News. "As a middle linebacker in the NFL, if you don't have five of these (Grade 1 effects) each game, you were inactive the next game

Amazingly, Plummer has decided not to kill himself yet.

[ervinsm84]

Originally Posted by Todd Gack

Amazingly, Plummer has decided not to kill himself yet.

U stay classy toddy

Amazingly, u still are not grasping this issue, and continue to paint a convenient straw man to argue against.

[Todd Gack]

Originally Posted by ervinsm84

U stay classy toddy

Amazingly, u still are not grasping this issue, and continue to paint a convenient straw man to argue against.

Are you sure I'm the one not grasping the issue?

[ervinsm84]

My great grandfather smoked 2 packs a day for over 60 years...Lived to 95 before dying of natural causes and never got lung cancer

Amazingly, smoking never killed him. Therefore, smoking must not be dangerous for your health.

Anecdotal evidence is fun

[Sea Ray]

Originally Posted by ervinsm84

My great grandfather smoked 2 packs a day for over 60 years...Lived to 95 before dying of natural causes and never got lung cancer

Amazingly, smoking never killed him. Therefore, smoking must not be dangerous for your health.

Anecdotal evidence is fun

Do you think Todd said that concussions are "not dangerous for your health" or are you stretching things a bit here?