How to Fix Football

Football is a game of contact and constant hitting. I remember when I was in high school on a scout team trying to run full speed into one of the strongest guys in the school just trying to budge him. Afterwards we both smiled and laughed about it to do it again on the next play. It makes me wonder if the coaches got a kick out of seeing it as we kept running the same field goal play over and over.

Enough with the memories. As we begin Super Bowl week, I find that my interest in football decreases more and more each week. We have constant reminders that it is a violent sport with hitting, but the league wants to punish those who are a little too violent with blows to the head. For the first few weeks of the season, we had different special story's that you would hear on Sports Center related to head injuries from concussions. It amazes me that Steve Young had as many concussions as he had and still appears fine and looking great on television. He is the Dick Clark of football announcing. 

Over the years, technology has help improve football player's helmets to make the sport safer. It appears that it is not making the sport safer but encouraging more violent hits. There are a couple of problems that I have with the sport at this time. The first being that the defensive player gets fined if they hit an offensive player in the head, but many times an offensive player will duck down to lead with their head when they see a defender approaching, but they never get fined or penalized. Not only do they not get penalized, but often times they injure themselves in the process. 

Each video in high school, it was stressed not to lead with your helmet so you do not become paralyzed. Today's players must not have watched that film. I remember one special on Sports Center where a high school football player became paralyzed for leading with his helmet. Was this kid sleeping during the video or was that video not shown to that team?

Regardless, offensive players should be fined and possibly suspended for leading with their helmet just as defensive players. So how do you solve this problem? 

GET RID OF HELMETS!

Put the players back in the leather strapped pads as they wore when football began. Most football players don't wear the thigh, knee or hip pads anyway. If you took the helmet away from football, they certainly wouldn't lower their head and if they do, that is there problem. They were dumb to start so what is the difference if they want to become dumber and lower their unprotected head. 

Besides reducing the head protections, there needs to be more flags for late hits. So many times I have seen this season that people will hit the ground only to have a defensive player run in and throw a shoulder into them when they are on the ground. This should be flagged as unnecessary roughness. I only saw one flag all season for it. The players certainly won't do it to a quarterback on the ground, but they shouldn't be doing it at all.

Another way to reduce the number of late hits on the ground would be for the NFL to adopt the rule that the younger players ad hear to and that is when someone touches the ground, they are down. This is how they play in college, why should the rule change in the NFL?

So to summarize: 

• Penalize offensive players who lower their heads
• Eliminate helmets and move to leather soft headgear
• Penalize late hits when the player is on the ground
• Call the play over as soon as the player touches the ground

The way football is now, I don't know that I will care to watch next any games next year other than the Super Bowl. That is because of the awesome commercials. lol

That will free up so much more time on Sundays and Monday nights! Don't forget Thursday nights too!