NFL concussion litigation: ramifications for football?

[theRainbowGame]

Some of you may have noticed that the NFL is currently in the middle of quite a few lawsuits involving the concussion of players.

The AFL seems to have recognised the trend in recent years and put it a number of obstacles to reduce the chance they can be sued for negligence.

The article here has a very good discussion:

http://www.forbes.com/sites/darrenh...amed-defendants-in-nfl-concussion-litigation/

The AFL (and possibly some state leagues) will probably follow the outcomes of these cases very closely.

 

[Coconut_twirl]

What is the current trend with concussions in the AFL? Are they increasing?

Concussions are always going to happen in football, mostly in accidental circumstances. Unless a club doctor gets exposed for sending an unit player back in the field, I would suspects any potential lawsuits would be minimal in the AFL.

The AFL would only need to highlight the potential risks to players who receive several concussions. Would any player risk their long term health to play footy, especially when you factor the money involved these days? I would say plenty. It's no secret some players do suffer long term injuries from their former playing days that are still present in the current lives. There are plenty of retired players with dodgy knees and hips.

The brain and head are different and potentially more damaging, but the AFL has signalled a strong message with any head high contact through the tribunal. You would think the AFL would be working with clubs to be educating players about the issues and risks.

 

[theRainbowGame]

What is the current trend with concussions in the AFL? Are they increasing?

Concussions are always going to happen in football, mostly in accidental circumstances. Unless a club doctor gets exposed for sending an unit player back in the field, I would suspects any potential lawsuits would be minimal in the AFL.

The AFL would only need to highlight the potential risks to players who receive several concussions. Would any player risk their long term health to play footy, especially when you factor the money involved these days? I would say plenty. It's no secret some players do suffer long term injuries from their former playing days that are still present in the current lives. There are plenty of retired players with dodgy knees and hips.

The brain and head are different and potentially more damaging, but the AFL has signalled a strong message with any head high contact through the tribunal. You would think the AFL would be working with clubs to be educating players about the issues and risks.

I have no idea about the numbers. I just referring to the action the AFL is taking with the issue (ALOT in the last two years).

Many sports people would sacrifice their health for more money. The same way many Investment Bankers sacrifice their bodies by working long hours also.

 

[R00StaR]

Makes you wonder how sports such as boxing will survive. Bye bye contact sports?

 

[theRainbowGame]

Makes you wonder how sports such as boxing will survive. Bye bye contact sports?

UFC will take care of it

 

[Tas]

AFL has nothing to worry about, we are not keeping any secret research from players. AFL has been making changes to the rules to help reduce the incidents of high contact and to make sure concussed players are not put at risk.

Besides, you can sue for almost anything in the USA, it is not as bad here.

 

[cos789]

Concussions are always going to happen in football, mostly in accidental circumstances. Unless a club doctor gets exposed for sending an unit player back in the field, I would suspects any potential lawsuits would be minimal in the AFL.

The code with a possible big headache is rl though.

.

 

[DOSACHOKER1]

The code with a possible big headache is rl though.

.

yes NRL has huge problems, mainly because ever since they are kids they are taught they are weak if they don't play through any inj and their management of concussion borders the rediculous. AFL is a lot better but still needs to do more work, player education needs to start in juniors as well as parent education, too often we parents just let our kids dictate to us and they will always say they are ok because they only see short term, missing the game when you are 10 is the end of the world. The AFL can lead the way by admitting that they need to improve concussion management, prevention they are great at and it isn't the concern these lawsuits are based on. NFL is a different game however the premise of concussion management is. What I would say is all players don't think about the long term effect of inj, they say "I'll worry about that when I'm older" however the brain is different, it controls our every function and the smallest inj to our brain can have a large and permanent impact on our everyday life. Long after the footy club has finished with the player, who helps the player pick up the pieces then?

 

[ausbacker]

Whatever course of action the NFLPA takes rest assured the AFLPA will mimic.

 

[Coconut_twirl]

The code with a possible big headache is rl though

Why only single rugby league? Yes, rugby league has to contend with the potential problem. However, any contact sport where the head can be exposed could potentially be at risk. Rugby union, American Football and AFL will always have the potential risk for concussion issues. All of those sports will actively be promoting education and proactive measures to help minimise the risks.

 

[cos789]

Why only single rugby league?

The sport with the biggest risk is the sport with the most number of violent collisions and the
AFL is already addressing the problem.

.

 

[DOSACHOKER1]

they are but they are not really addressing the way players are being managed, not conservative enough and return to play on same day needs to be addressed.

 

[Demonic Ascent]

Why only single rugby league? Yes, rugby league has to contend with the potential problem. However, any contact sport where the head can be exposed could potentially be at risk. Rugby union, American Football and AFL will always have the potential risk for concussion issues. All of those sports will actively be promoting education and proactive measures to help minimise the risks.

Heard the BS Report podcast with Chris Nowinski (former wrestler) who has been involved in the concussion research. He was of the opinion that soccer could be as bad or worse, especially for kids, due to the "headers" causing mini concussions. As this seems to be a cumulative issue it doesn't matter if someone gets KO'd or just minor concussion. If a child playing soccer headbutts a ball a few hundred times before their brains develop they could be at as bad a risk as an AFL player who cops 3 or 4 concussions during their career.

 

[cos789]

Heard the BS Report podcast with Chris Nowinski (former wrestler) who has been involved in the concussion research. He was of the opinion that soccer could be as bad or worse, especially for kids, due to the "headers" causing mini concussions. As this seems to be a cumulative issue it doesn't matter if someone gets KO'd or just minor concussion. If a child playing soccer headbutts a ball a few hundred times before their brains develop they could be at as bad a risk as an AFL player who cops 3 or 4 concussions during their career.

And that theory has been around a long time.

.

 

[DOSACHOKER1]

And that theory has been around a long time.

.

it has and also newer research now suggst some people carry a gene which makes them more at risk to concussion and more susceptible to serious concussion. Young female athletes most at risk due to weaker neck muscles

 

[Arwib]

Do the Rugby codes actually get a lot of concussions? I would have thought with the more predictable angles of impact they might not be such a big problem.

 

[cos789]

Do the Rugby codes actually get a lot of concussions? I would have thought with the more predictable angles of impact they might not be such a big problem.

You haven't watched a game of rl have you.
Maybe you were watching RU where they don't tackle that much.
.

 

[Arwib]

Yeah I guess I'm thinking more of union. I do remember Meninga's hit on Lamb in the 94 grand final. That was pretty epically concussive, but the key thing was Lamb never saw it coming. Most of the time it seems to me that even in League they don't get totall blindsided very often.

Maybe I'm over-estimating the "caught unawares" factor in concussions.

 

[cos789]

Yeah I guess I'm thinking more of union. I do remember Meninga's hit on Lamb in the 94 grand final. That was pretty epically concussive, but the key thing was Lamb never saw it coming. Most of the time it seems to me that even in League they don't get totall blindsided very often.

Maybe I'm over-estimating the "caught unawares" factor in concussions.

More likely you're dismissing the repetitious nature of contacts like boxing and rl.
Then again you don't see many headers in a game of soccer yet some people have
been worried about that for some time.
.

 

[Arwib]

True that.

 

[DOSACHOKER1]

More likely you're dismissing the repetitious nature of contacts like boxing and rl.
Then again you don't see many headers in a game of soccer yet some people have
been worried about that for some time.
.

also it doesn't neccesarily get caused by impact, the sudden deceleration or jerking of the head can cause a concussion as well such as a fall and bracing the landing but the head gets rocked but makes no contact with anything, a blind sided hit or bump in any sport without head contact can still cause concussion, especially at lower levels where the participants are physically less conditioned. Soccer an interesting one, they changed the balls to make them lighter a while back now which means they were given research suggesting the change I suspect? Boxing, well that is an obvious one and funnily enough is highly regulated to stop it at amatuer level even though the aim is to knock out your opponent?

 

[whiteoak]

*bump*

Not sure if this has been posted elsewhere, or if this is even the right thread.

But an interesting article, involving some ground breaking research, on the the topic nonetheless.

In New Zealand, where rugby union is the national game, the Hutt Old Boys Marist club is taking a high-technology approach to the issue. The club is using electronic mouth guards and patches stuck behind the ear to measure the force, direction and rotation of any impact during a game. The data are suggesting that players sometimes face the same strain as when two cars collide.

An F-16 fighter-jet roll is equivalent to 9 G’s of force, although that is over a prolonged period of time compared with an impact in a rugby game. A car crash at 65 kilometers, or 40 miles, per hour is about 35 G’s.
“The highest G-force recorded was 205 G and the player played the whole game with no signs of cognitive injury post-match,” said King, who began his research into concussion after watching a rugby league player die on the field in 1998 as a result of concussions and cranial bleeding.

(If a concussion is confirmed, then a player needs to take at least three weeks off and be cleared by a medical official before he can play again.)

http://www.nytimes.com/2013/04/19/s...-really-are.html?pagewanted=1&_r=0&ref=global



To my way of thinking, they are some staggering figures in regards to g-forces upon impact when placed in the comparisons within the article. What would the G-forces involved in the Wirra versus McManus impact be, for example? And all of the other countless huge collisions that we have all seen.

And in regards to the final quote: What are the chances of a mandatory 3 week lay-off becoming the norm in contact sport??

**Be aware that the article in the link contains 2 pages**

 

[cos789]

All players will where G force meters and players will be subbed off when limits breached.
Illegal infractions will be penalised in direct proportion to the illegal force applied.
Rugby to immediately die out.

 

[Gasometer]

....latest update...

http://www.latimes.com/sports/la-sp-sn-nfl-settlement-20140114,0,7514834.story#axzz2qPzKLyi2

 

[Vdubs]

More likely you're dismissing the repetitious nature of contacts like boxing and rl.
Then again you don't see many headers in a game of soccer yet some people have
been worried about that for some time.
.

Not sure about that- I am amazed at how many headers there are during A-League games for starters. I might do a "head count" this weekend, as I have to do some work in that area anyway.