It has been a thought of mine for quite some time now. And in the wake of  the recent tragic suicide of likely Hall-Of-Famer Junior Seau, I couldn’t help but assume  what was to come.
I was sitting at my home when I had heard the news as I regularly watch the “NFL” network. As soon as I had heard the news obviously I was saddened, but it wasn’t entirely of the fact that he had chosen to take his own life. It was more the fact that like most cases around the NFL, it  would be about how concussions drove the player to make such a brash decision.
Now no one will ever know for sure what or why it ever happened but rest assured when the results are in there will be more controversy over NFL safety.
Let’s not twist things. I am all about a player safety and in this generation and age of technology we have come a long way in advancements and have rules in place that were never implemented in any sport prior.
The point I would like to get at is.....let them play. These are NFL superstars; they know the risk and the reward of a career in the NFL. Don’t take the physicality out of what makes the game, the game that we love. Let them play. This game is physical, this game is violent. People want to see that “big hit.”
Turn some defenders loose, let them get after the quarterback. Quit putting a “bib” on the qb. Tell him to man up, he is an elite high profile NFL athlete who gets paid like it. Sometimes you have to eat turf, it’s part of the game. Stop letting players like Brady point for a flag because they felt like their shins were grazed by a shoulder pad. Man up and take one off the chin like your forefathers. I love football and have watched hours of film over many players and never once did I see Otto Graham, Fran Tarkenton or Y.A. Tittle run away from a defender then point at the official begging for a flag. Nor did I ever see “Broadway” Joe Namath, Bart Starr or Johnny Unitas whine because they got hit in the mouth.
This is a vicious game and players know from the time they  begin playing Pop Warner what kind of sport they are getting into. Injuries will happen. Unfortunately concussions are a part of the game. As a fan, I can appreciate the sacrifice that your body will give for the game. But on the other side of the coin, this is also your occupation.
No one is saying you can’t walk away from the game because it is that simple. Just walk away.
The NFL has faced bits of legal action from former players on the grounds of concussions and they should get more money because the game tarnished their memory and had affected their life since retirement. Again, no one ever said you wouldn’t take a few shots to the head. Now for clarity, I am in no way against the  safety of our players. But these players are grown men and are capable of making a decision to play or not.
They say it’s an epidemic. Well, it may be but it is still a choice to play the game. Would a local firefighter sue his unit or his county because he was burned on the job? Would a police officer do the same if he was shot stopping a criminal?
Don’t be a detriment to the game because you feel you should be more compensated for what you did and what has become of your situation.
When you put that gear on, you are always aware of this could be the last time you ever get to play the game. So play to the fullest; let the quarterbacks get hit. Let them have a few grass stains.
One more time, I do not condone nor do I advocate that players aim to hurt one another and go “head hunting.” But if the player happens to get hit around the cranial region, let it be. It’s football, people get hit.  I’m not saying play if you have been diagnosed with a concussion. Sit out do what your doctor tells you and take a week or two off. But the fact is, you know it can and most likely will happen again. And it’s your choice to go out there and risk it. And if you do, then you have my respect because you love the game for what it is and choose to face the consequences of life in the NFL. And if you choose to walk away, you also have my upmost mutual respect to walk away from the game you love and not make the gamble. But don’t bite the hand that feeds you and expect something because you feel you’re owed. You were not forced into signing that multi-million-dollar contract saying you would play the game to the fullest.
There are millions of average Joes out in the world who would give anything for a chance and a shot at the dream of an NFL superstar. And they will all know what they are getting into.
Be mad that you didn’t run out of bounds more; be mad you didn’t slide; be mad you didn’t sit that next play out. But don’t be mad at the game I love. And don’t make it something it’s not. Let it be what it used to be, a game of grit and toughness. A game where a quarterback was scared to death because Dick Butkus was going to trample him  to the ground and there was nothing he could do about it. A game where Jack Lambert told you he was going to put you down in the dirt and you knew he would, and there was no flag because that was football. And that is how the game should be played. But that is just my opinion, take it how ever you must.