JAYFORCE

Well… with Frank Gifford’s post mortem diagnosis of Chronic Traumatic Encephalopathy (CTE), we get yet another headline and reminder that football – like it or love it – is a dangerous COLLISION sport wrought with injuries…when playing and for the decades beyond. Try and try as American football’s flagship (the National Football League) might, no one has been able to reengineer injury out of the game. Look no further than comments from the NFL commish Roger Goodell in the 60 Minutes clip (embedded after the jump, or click the pic above) for a dose of football-injury reality.

Steve Kroft: You think the game is safer than it’s ever been before?
Roger Goodell: I do. I’m convinced of it. I think the changes that we’ve made have had real results. And we’re seeing that.
Steve Kroft: But do you believe it’s safe?
Roger Goodell: I do believe it’s safer. But injuries are part of active sports and they’re certainly part of football. Football is a contact sport.

Or you could boil it down to retired Ravens’ linebacker Ed Reed’s response…

Steve Kroft: Can you take the violence out of football?
Ed Reed: No.

Truly engaging treatment of the the topic in “Football And The Brain” on CBS News’ 60 Minutes.

60 MINUTES: FOOTBALL AND THE BRAIN (CBS NEWS)

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