Interesting Rick Reilly read...and very true.

[stlnd01]

I don't know. I'm starting to lose it with the NFL, in particular. Not a fan of the way so many players are treated like basically disposable commodities. Coal miners and lumberjacks at least make a life-long living out of their business. Most NFL players are tossed on the scrap heap before they turn 28. Then what? (This is not helped by the fact that so many of them squander their college years in anticipation of big NFL paychecks.)

I get that a guy who hangs around an NFL roster for 16 games will earn more in four months than I will in five years. And that anyone who's paying any attention at this point should be aware of the head injury risk. But I still feel like too many people are being essentially broken for our amusement. That's troubling at some level.

 

[Bishop2b5]

Every pro player for years has known the risks and the probable long-term effects on their bodies, but I doubt many if any thought concussions had such severe eventual effects on their brain until recently. If I were a 22-year-old about to play in the NFL, I'm not saying I'd say no (that's some SERIOUS money), but I'd think about whether it was worth the damage to my brain and ending up with CTE. I could live with sore knees. A scramled brain is another story.

 

[Irishnuke]

Reilly is so full of shit...about everything.

 

[Grahambo]

Didn't read the article or even have a good opinion on the matter, but thought I would add this little know factoid…

A great deal of gladiators weren't slaves. Many were volunteers looking for a way to improve their class status.



The Roman Gladiator: Who Were the Gladiators?

I tried repping you but apparently I do that too much.

Free history lesson? Yes sir. Ill take a free history lesson any day.