December 10, 2012 6:21 AM

How do you know when America's most popular game is too dangerous for its own good?

No more kickoffs? In an attempt to reduce player injuries on these typically frantic plays, NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell has reportedly broached the idea of eliminating this aspect of the game altogether.

As I’ve written many times before, I LOVE football. As a former quarterback, I still cherish the memory of feeling the laces spin off my fingertips as I released a pass. Being too short and slow enough that my coaches could time me in a 40-yard dash with a sundial, my football career was brief and undistinguished. Still, I remember the excitement of sitting in a locker room before a game, my nerves on edges as I struggled to keep my fear in check. More than anything, I remember getting the crap beat out of me. When I wasn’t getting hit, I was running for my life, because my offensive line couldn’t have blocked the Swedish Bikini Team. When you’re as slow as I was…well, let’s just say I picked a lot of grass and dirt out of my facemask.

I was fortunate, in that I didn’t play long enough to reach the level where I’d be dodging 300+-lb. defensive linemen, most of whom could run 4.6 or 4.7 40s. I didn’t have to worry about the long-term effects of repeated concussions (those I’d get on the soccer field). In the NFL these days, collisions between very large men colliding at surprising speeds is a cost of doing business…and the long-term cost appears to be increasing. Concussions are a hot topic these days, and for good reason. With the suicides of Dave Duerson and Junior Seau, players, fans, and the Lords of the NFL are beginning to understand that the impact of repeated blows to the head can be significant, long-term, and in some cases deadly.

So how do you go about changing a game characterized by George Will as “violence punctuated by committee meetings?” Football, particularly at the NFL level, is a game predicated on collisions- collisions that some players have described as experiencing the impact of an automobile accident on every play.

And you thought your job was tough….

To his credit, NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell has the league thinking seriously about concussions, and player safety is a much bigger issue than ever before. Of course, one could argue that any game predicated on repeated full-speed collisions will have a problem with player safety. How then to maintain the character of the game America loves, while maintaining the violence and physicality that makes the NFL game what it is?

Goodell has tinkered with the kickoff, which by its very nature is a potential train wreck looking for a place to happen. Kickoffs have been moved from the 30 to the 35-yard line, which has resulted in more touchbacks and a 43% reduction in concussion incurred during kickoffs. Fans, of course, don’t necessarily recognize the reduction in concussive impacts; it’s not something that comes up in the stands at your average NFL game. The rule change hasn’t been met with universal acclaim, which is understandable. Watching a player take a knee in the end zone is far less exciting than watching a kickoff return unfold, with its attendant speed, evasion, and barely organized violence.

After a touchdown or made field goal…a team that would have previously been kicking off would instead get the ball at its own 30-yard line, facing fourth and 15. The team can either punt or attempt to pick up a first down and keep the ball. This proposal has reportedly been promoted by Tampa Bay Buccaneers coach Greg Schiano.

If tinkering with the rules governing kickoffs can reduce the incidence of concussions, will eliminating them altogether have an even greater impact? That appears to be the idea that Commissioner Goodell is toying with. That it would change the character of NFL football is undeniable. That it would increase player safety seems self-evident. That it will be unfavorably received by fans and even some players seems unavoidable.

Is the likelihood that the the possibility of catastrophic head injury would be significantly reduced make it worth eliminating a fundamental part of the NFL game? If you’re going to argue against change, keep in mind that the NFL resisted the two-point conversion for years. Now it’s an accepted part of the strategic arsenal available to coaches, and the risk/reward calculation of a two-point conversion can make a game more exciting.

Personally, I like this idea. As players have become bigger, faster, and stronger, the risk of catastrophic injury has increased at a disturbing pace. The long-term effect on players long after they leave the game has been well-documented. The phrase “Chronic Traumatic Encephalopathy” has become an unfortunate part of the football vernacular. CTE can’t be diagnosed until after death, but enough research has been done to at least anecdotally verify that playing football, particularly at the NFL level, can have a serious, long-term deleterious effect on players long after they leave the game.

I find myself wondering how many Dave Duersons or Junior Seaus it will take before fans and players recognize and accept the need to make changes that will increase player safety. Eliminating kickoffs would be a step, but only one step, in that direction. While fans and some players will moan about how NFL players will be wearing skirts before long, I’d submit that it’s time to recognize that the NFL game has changed fundamentally since the days of leather helmets. It’s time to recognize reality and adjust accordingly before we lose even more former players.

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This page contains a single entry by Jack Cluth published on December 10, 2012 6:21 AM.

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