Expression Essay-Head Injuries


Head injuries in football is a very serious issue. Many people get injured due to helmet to helmet contact every year and needs to be either somehow prevented or stopped. The NFL has created a new rule recently saying that players will be fined and will receive a penalty for helmet to helmet contact. But in younger leagues, players are more vulnerable to head injuries. Due to less referees on the field and the punishments are less harsh, causing more and more head injuries each year. Dave Duerson, a former NFL football player shot himself in the chest in 2011. You wonder, why did he do that? After his suicide, scientists later examined his brain and found neurodegenerative disease linked to a series of concussions sustained on the playing field, and that had helped trigger depression. There are more issues linked to head injuries and it is very unfortunate.

The issue needs to be stopped and coaches need to teach their players to play heads up football. Heads Up Football is an organization dedicated to teaching youngsters to tackle correctly. “To me, coaching certification is vitally important, and what USA Football is doing is really great; it’s brilliant. It’s what we should be doing. Let’s give them a place to go where they can learn the game and parents can have the confidence that my coach has been certified,” Coach John Harbaugh of the Baltimore Ravens said. There are 4 steps to teaching the correct form of tackling:
1. A player safety coach in every organization
2. Player Safety coach teaches league coaches
3. Educating parents and players
4. Ongoing guidance and monitoring throughout the season


Everybody at USA Football is trying their hardest to prevent kids from head injuries. The biggest advice you can teach a player is to never put your head down, always have your head and eyes UP. If the players are taught the correct techniques then they will be able to enjoy the game even more and the parents will also be okay about them playing football. As a parent of a young child, you would want to protect them. Playing football isn’t exactly protecting them, but with the Heads Up Football program parents will know their child is safe out on the football field.

I heard of story about a young football player in the Bert Bell league who died because he lowered his head during a tackle. He was only 11 years old. This boy played for Greater 69th Street in Philadelphia, I would know this because when I played football for the Kennett-Unionville Titans, I played there. It wasn’t the greatest field, but there was one thing I noticed under a tree; there was a cross and lots of flowers around it, it was a memorial. Even though I never met the child or any other of his friends and family, I knew that this was a big deal to all of them. And to pay tribute to the boy who died, everybody, on every team in the league, had a sticker on their helmets with his initials on it. I feel very strong about this topic and I am happy to see people trying to prevent it.