Leave it all out on the field

I have been involved in sports my whole life. I played in some form organized or not throughout college. I was always told by coaches to put forth full effort. Leave it all out on the field.

Now with the advancement in knowledge of sports related injuries, players are told to hold back. They are fined exhorbitant(sp?) amounts of money(in some cases more than some people make in a year), they are suspended for several games, and in even the least severe of cases, penalized which in some cases, changes the momentum and outcome of the game.

I understand how injuries can linger and become worse later in life. But if someone chooses to play football for a career, they obviously have been playing their entire lives already. They understand the risk that goes along with playing the game. We've seen people get paralyzed, beaten, bruised, and in some cases, head injuries cause mental health problems and death later in life...again I say, this is the choice these men have made, knowing full well the risks of the game.

By telling these players that they are no longer allowed to hit a ballcarrier, they are basically saying, "Take everything you know about the game, and forget it." The league is over-reacting to a few isolated incidents, and in turn turning the game into a less than desirable product.

The game is played for the fans. The word Fan being short of FANATIC, names every person who waits all week long for the next game. The person who spends the last of their money on their favorite player's jersey. The person who pines during the entire off season on the moves that their team makes. It is the blue collar factory worker and the white collar business man. On game day, it is all about the fan, because without them, the games wouldn't be played.

The new rules about playing are bringing fans who spend their hard earned money to watch in question. If the league is so concerned about concussions, they should make the new helmets that prevent concussions mandatory. I know they exist, deshawn jackson wore one this week.

If they continue down this road, they wont need to worry about a lock out...the league's existance is actually on the line now. Players are questioning the judgment of the officials(commissioner included), and fans are questioning the legitimacy of the game itself.

As a lifelong fan of football and all sports, I think it's time for the leagues to stop sticking their hands in the games and stick to fielding a professional, exciting, acceptable product on the field. By worrying so much about injuries(that are going to happen anyway) they are making the final product less impressive. I'm not sure how much more I can watch. And I know I'm not alone.

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