WVUFootball29 Posted December 21, 2010 Posted December 21, 2010 When this season got underway things were looking really good for this kid and in the 9 games he has played in this season, he has already accumulated the same stats he had in 16 last year. However, 3 concussions in one season is definitely going to be cause for concern for him, his health, and his career. How many concussions will the league allow him to sustain before they step in? Player safety and head injuries have been a top story all year and long term player health and well being has been a league and union concern of growing interest as well.
SageAgainstTheMachine Posted December 21, 2010 Posted December 21, 2010 When this season got underway things were looking really good for this kid and in the 9 games he has played in this season, he has already accumulated the same stats he had in 16 last year. However, 3 concussions in one season is definitely going to be cause for concern for him, his health, and his career. How many concussions will the league allow him to sustain before they step in? Player safety and head injuries have been a top story all year and long term player health and well being has been a league and union concern of growing interest as well. There's a pretty good chance we've seen 15-20 years stolen from the end of Austin Collie's life. That's a pretty sickening thought...poor guy's brain is going to be jelly when he's 60.
dollars 2 donuts Posted December 21, 2010 Posted December 21, 2010 I'll state what i have been stating for years now; why are these guys not wearing the Mark Kelso Kazzoo helmet. It doesn't look cool enough for you? You'd rather have the concussions? Kelso went from 4-6 concussions in the first few years of his career to 1 in the remainder with the Kazzoo. This is ridiculous...they can stop this, they really can.
DC Grid Posted December 21, 2010 Posted December 21, 2010 I'll state what i have been stating for years now; why are these guys not wearing the Mark Kelso Kazzoo helmet. It doesn't look cool enough for you? You'd rather have the concussions? Kelso went from 4-6 concussions in the first few years of his career to 1 in the remainder with the Kazzoo. This is ridiculous...they can stop this, they really can. Amen.
WVUFootball29 Posted December 21, 2010 Author Posted December 21, 2010 Found this article a couple months ago about a guy redesigning the football helmet, I'd be interested to see what kind of results this sees in testing. http://www.wired.com/playbook/2010/08/better-football-helmet/
jr1 Posted December 21, 2010 Posted December 21, 2010 The Kelso helmet should be mandatory by the league
dollars 2 donuts Posted December 21, 2010 Posted December 21, 2010 Amen. I'll go a step farther on this DC; Mark Kelso should be talking about this. He should be writing articles and making himself available to give interviews with respect to what this meant for his career and life. He should not wait around for people (ESPN, WGR, or 97 rock) to ask him. He should be forcing his opinion on them with respect to this subject.
ColdBlueNorth Posted December 21, 2010 Posted December 21, 2010 Its too bad... you can always tell when concussions have reached critical mass - a player gets barely hit and is out cold. Bad sign for a talented kid who really came on for Manning when he was in the lineup.
l< j Posted December 21, 2010 Posted December 21, 2010 Football is a hard game on a person, no doubt. But some of this stuff is preventable, as you guys point out. Think, people, think. Good point about Kelso: send him an email through the Bills.
DrDawkinstein Posted December 21, 2010 Posted December 21, 2010 (edited) I'll state what i have been stating for years now; why are these guys not wearing the Mark Kelso Kazzoo helmet. It doesn't look cool enough for you? You'd rather have the concussions? Kelso went from 4-6 concussions in the first few years of his career to 1 in the remainder with the Kazzoo. This is ridiculous...they can stop this, they really can. The Kelso helmet should be mandatory by the league I'll go a step farther on this DC; Mark Kelso should be talking about this. He should be writing articles and making himself available to give interviews with respect to what this meant for his career and life. He should not wait around for people (ESPN, WGR, or 97 rock) to ask him. He should be forcing his opinion on them with respect to this subject. I'll try to dig up the articles, but basically, helmet technology and research has advanced so greatly over the last 15 or so years, that the new helmets are MORE effective than the old helmet+kazoo helmet that Kelso wore. It has also been proven that the Kazoo helmet really didnt do that much and was more of a placebo for the player than an actual safety device. Concussions happen when the brain slams into the inside of the skull. An extra 1/8" piece of foam on the top of the helmet doesnt do much to stop that. Edited December 21, 2010 by DrDankenstein
DreReed83 Posted December 21, 2010 Posted December 21, 2010 I'll try to dig up the articles, but basically, helmet technology and research has advanced so greatly over the last 15 or so years, that the new helmets are MORE effective than the old helmet+kazoo helmet that Kelso wore. It has also been proven that the Kazoo helmet really didnt do that much and was more of a placebo for the player than an actual safety device. Concussions happen when the brain slams into the inside of the skull. An extra 1/8" piece of foam on the top of the helmet doesnt do much to stop that. Well said. I've already pointed out that the Kelso helmet wouldn't stop concussions but people here just don't tend to listen. Concussions are a part of the game. It sucks, but there's no way in stopping it. If you wanna stop it, then we must change it to a no tackle league. Flag football or 2 hand touch maybe.
ieatcrayonz Posted December 21, 2010 Posted December 21, 2010 There's a pretty good chance we've seen 15-20 years stolen from the end of Austin Collie's life. That's a pretty sickening thought...poor guy's brain is going to be jelly when he's 60. I have as much or more respect for old people than anyone, but if you've ever driven behind some codger doing 32 in a 65 you'd realize that the average human brain is pretty much jelly at 60.
DreReed83 Posted December 21, 2010 Posted December 21, 2010 I have as much or more respect for old people than anyone, but if you've ever driven behind some codger doing 32 in a 65 you'd realize that the average human brain is pretty much jelly at 60. Not really? That's just an ignorant thing to say. Just because you're eye sight goes and your reaction time lags, doesn't necessarily mean your brain is jelly. What does driving have anything to do with this?
Over 29 years of fanhood Posted December 21, 2010 Posted December 21, 2010 (edited) I'll state what i have been stating for years now; why are these guys not wearing the Mark Kelso Kazzoo helmet. It doesn't look cool enough for you? You'd rather have the concussions? Kelso went from 4-6 concussions in the first few years of his career to 1 in the remainder with the Kazzoo. This is ridiculous...they can stop this, they really can. If everyone wore the foam dome, it would double the shock absorption. They need some break thoughs in head gear or else they are going to reduce the game to 2 hand touch. Edited December 21, 2010 by over 20 years of fanhood
BuffaloWings Posted December 21, 2010 Posted December 21, 2010 Not that it compares to what he's going through, but he was my fantasy stud this year. I won several games with him early and advanced to my championship game with his huge first half last week. Too bad from a fantasy perspective, but I'd rather see the guy sit and get himself healthy.
eSJayDee Posted December 21, 2010 Posted December 21, 2010 Concussions happen when the brain slams into the inside of the skull. An extra 1/8" piece of foam on the top of the helmet doesn't do much to stop that. It looked like it was a heck of a lot more than 1/8". I'd say 1/2" or maybe more. And I don't have any empirical evidence to support the opinion, I'd think that in many instances, that extra 1/2" padding WOULD be substantial (let alone that for head to head hits, you'd have 1".) You already have some padding on the inside of helmets. I'd think what the extra padding would do is slow down the brain's collision w/ the skull. Sorta like those water filled barrels that stop you from slamming into a concrete barrier. You've still got the deceleration, except that w/ the extra padding, that deceleration occurs over perhaps 1" (or 2" for head to head) rather than basically nothing. This would/should yield much less trauma to the brain.
ramses Posted December 21, 2010 Posted December 21, 2010 on a somewhat related note - this issue makes what the players are asking for in the collective bargaining agreement a little confusing (?hypocritical) to me. on the one hand, they nobly want to ensure that the health of players is taken care of when their careers are done, with generous pensions and health insurance. on the other hand, when you fine them for helmet to helmet hits...they raise a stink and say that hitting is part of the game and this isn't tennis. as a medical professional, austin collie needs to hang it up; per some specialists - permanently
dollars 2 donuts Posted December 21, 2010 Posted December 21, 2010 I'll try to dig up the articles, but basically, helmet technology and research has advanced so greatly over the last 15 or so years, that the new helmets are MORE effective than the old helmet+kazoo helmet that Kelso wore. It has also been proven that the Kazoo helmet really didnt do that much and was more of a placebo for the player than an actual safety device. Concussions happen when the brain slams into the inside of the skull. An extra 1/8" piece of foam on the top of the helmet doesnt do much to stop that. I'm not doubting you, Doc, but a fact is fact and that "placebo" worked...some how.
cantankerous Posted December 21, 2010 Posted December 21, 2010 I'm all for safety and if I was blessed with enough talent and physical tools to play in the NFL, i'd probably take every measure to ensure i'd be safe. But...this is america, if these guys want to crack heads until they're turned to mush for insane amounts of money, I say let them.
ieatcrayonz Posted December 21, 2010 Posted December 21, 2010 Not really? That's just an ignorant thing to say. Just because you're eye sight goes and your reaction time lags, doesn't necessarily mean your brain is jelly. What does driving have anything to do with this? I was only using driving as an example. There are other things to indicate the jelly-ness of an over 60 brain. My post indicated that I have much or respect for old people than anyone but I guess you didn't read that part.
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