Bart Scott : I don’t want my son to play football ~ ~ ~

[kelly]

> [url]http://www.nydailynews.com/sports/football/jets/ny-jets-linebacker-bart-scott-son-play-football-nfl-continues-battle-concussion-issue-article-1.1085074?print[/url]

[Charlie Brown]

Article is really about how a father loves his son. Nice Post.

[TechJet]

I kinda dont want my 7 yr old son to play the game either, but he likes it he's already asking me if he can play this year again, his big brother starts high school OTA next week for this coming season, I dunno yet.

[Digetydog]

[QUOTE=TechJet;4478345]I kinda dont want my 7 yr old son to play the game either, but he likes it he's already asking me if he can play this year again, his big brother starts high school OTA next week for this coming season, I dunno yet.[/QUOTE]

Kids really don't need to start playing that young (unless it is flag FB). If they are going to be really good, they can wait without falling behind.

Since I only have a daughter, I won't make the call and can't judge. Just my 2 cents worth.

Good luck.

[DDNYjets]

[QUOTE=TechJet;4478345]I kinda dont want my 7 yr old son to play the game either, but he likes it he's already asking me if he can play this year again, his big brother starts high school OTA next week for this coming season, I dunno yet.[/QUOTE]

Kid wants to play, let him play. Stop worrying. He will be fine. The fact that he wants to play is a good thing.

[superbowlbeforeidie]

[QUOTE=DDNYjets;4478409]Kid wants to play, let him play. Stop worrying. He will be fine. The fact that he wants to play is a good thing.[/QUOTE]

The actual playing of the game that young is fine, they really do not posess the strength at that age to do any real harm. When puberty comes to play, that when you need to monitor injuries.

Just like baseball, I've seen girls play up to about 10, and the competition was pretty much equal.

I would however monitor the practices and the coaching; that's where
Some moron with a whistle can do damage- that why I
Volunteered to coach, did it for about 7 years for both my boys, and never had any significant injuries, concussions or anything else.

Let em play.

[green&white]

If you don't think that kids at 7-8 years old don't have the potential to give each other concussions, then you haven't watched many 7-8 games. Often times there is huge disparity in talent level betwen kids. I've seen some kids get lit up. It can be disturbing, especially when it's your own kid. The cumulative effect of getting hit in the head is what really concerns me.

[DDNYjets]

[QUOTE=superbowlbeforeidie;4478546]The actual playing of the game that young is fine, they really do not posess the strength at that age to do any real harm. When puberty comes to play, that when you need to monitor injuries.

Just like baseball, I've seen girls play up to about 10, and the competition was pretty much equal.

I would however monitor the practices and the coaching; that's where
Some moron with a whistle can do damage- that why I
Volunteered to coach, did it for about 7 years for both my boys, and never had any significant injuries, concussions or anything else.

Let em play.[/QUOTE]

Exactly.

Be as active as you can in your kids teams and teach them how to play the right way. And don't worry about them getting hurt. If they do, then deal with it. But kids are very resilient. It is the "grown ups" that have a hard time.

If my parents didn't let me play football I would have hated them for it. I got hurt plenty of times, broken thumbs, wrist, multiple fingers. Sprained ankles and knees. Never hard a diagnosed concussion but I had my bell rung plenty of times.

It was all worth it.

We need kids to play sports or sports will die. Also, we need to fight back against the wussification of America.

I hate how football is getting attacked right now. Of course some people have suffered ill-fates, but football has helped countless more people than it has hurt. I wish ESPN and other media would use some discretion and try not to feed into the anti-football sensationalism at this point in time.

[superbowlbeforeidie]

[QUOTE=green&white;4478554]If you don't think that kids at 7-8 years old don't have the potential to give each other concussions, then you haven't watched many 7-8 games. Often times there is huge disparity in talent level betwen kids. I've seen some kids get lit up. It can be disturbing, especially when it's your own kid. The cumulative effect of getting hit in the head is what really concerns me.[/QUOTE]

Let me preface this by saying anyone can get hurt in a contact sport,that's a no brainer.

As far as 7-8 year old games, i've been involved in too many to remember, and with all honesty- not one concussion comes to mind. Black and blues, cleats stepping on hands,face masks to someones back, and some leg injuries (nothing significant) but I am honestly trying to remember headaches or anything like that, but I do not.

Helmet to helmet contact is verboten, and the actual plays look more like bowling than anything else. If you seen these injuries more than I, i repect your observation.

I just haven't seen it, I guess it was just the luck of the football gods.

[green&white]

You know, I really haven't seen anything too serious, but with as little as we know about head trauma, I just don't think I want to subject my kids to that at such an early age.

[superbowlbeforeidie]

[QUOTE=green&white;4478570]You know, I really haven't seen anything too serious, but with as little as we know about head trauma, I just don't think I want to subject my kids to that at such an early age.[/QUOTE]

Understood.

Boys will be boys- remember unsupervised pick-up tackle football games as a kid? They still do it, among a lot more dumb things these young men do.

Now it may be pick-up mma matches for all I know, it's just part of the testosterone driven instincts from our cave man days.

We would tell the boys if we found out about these things, we would bench them. They loved being part of the team,wanted to play,wanted to wear the uniform, and didint want to let the team down- peer pressure also starts very early.

Given both scenarios, they are much better off in a controlled environment.

[sec.101row23]

[QUOTE=green&white;4478554]If you don't think that kids at 7-8 years old don't have the potential to give each other concussions, then you haven't watched many 7-8 games. Often times there is huge disparity in talent level betwen kids. I've seen some kids get lit up. It can be disturbing, especially when it's your own kid. The cumulative effect of getting hit in the head is what really concerns me.[/QUOTE]

True. My son will be going into 7th grade this upcoming season and has played pad level football since he was in 3rd grade. While there are not a lot of "violent" collisions or tackles, there are some here and there that cause concern. The biggest thing a parent needs to consider is the weight and athletic ability of their child. Depending on the league your particular town plays in, the weight limits may vary a little. In some cases kids are giving up 30-40 pounds from the low end to the high end of the limits. You have be very realistic when it comes to this and not get caught up in re-living YOUR glory days. I have seen kids much smaller deliver big hits to kids much heavier and vice verse. You also need to evaluate their coaches and get a feel of their competency. Some coaches are outstanding and will not put a child in a situation where he can not defend himself or is in harms way, and others are completely oblivious and are thinking they are coaching an NFL team. In the end YOU have to make that decision and be honest with your child and yourself.

[JetsNeedNewton]

One of the great things about a capitalistic society is that as needs grow and profits loom, someone steps forward to fill the void. IMO, someone will come up with safer equipment long before the profitablity of football is compromised.

[Digetydog]

[QUOTE=superbowlbeforeidie;4478564]Let me preface this by saying anyone can get hurt in a contact sport,that's a [B]no brainer[/B].

As far as 7-8 year old games, i've been involved in too many to remember, and with all honesty- not one concussion comes to mind. Black and blues, cleats stepping on hands,face masks to someones back, and some leg injuries (nothing significant) but I am honestly trying to remember headaches or anything like that, but I do not.

Helmet to helmet contact is verboten, and the actual plays look more like bowling than anything else. If you seen these injuries more than I, i repect your observation.

I just haven't seen it, I guess it was just the luck of the football gods.[/QUOTE]

Your use of the words "no brainer" was probably not a good idea.

There is no reason that 7-8 year olds should be playing tackle football in full pads.
- Some kids will be significantly bigger than others;
- Some kids will be crazy/stupid and do things that can injure others;
- Some kids will not pay attention and fail to protect themselves; and
- Kids that young are unlikely to learn anything useful that justifies the risks of playing in full pads.

I didn't start playing until I was in 6th grade. Had I decided to "stick" with it, I would not have been at any disadvantage. Indeed, one of the kids who started in 6th grade managed to become a HS and college All-America. He managed to play a couple of years in the NFL.

There is no reason to expose children to an extra 5 years of hits.

[Buster]

IMHO, the NFL’s greatest challenge is middle-income Americans no longer allowing their kids to play football. This and schools charging big fees to play (and thus eliminating poor kids from playing) will cause the NFL ‘long term’ problems.

They need to get the helmet thing sorted out, soon.

[DDNYjets]

[QUOTE=Digetydog;4478627]Your use of the words "no brainer" was probably not a good idea.

There is no reason that 7-8 year olds should be playing tackle football in full pads.
- [B]Some[/B] kids will be significantly bigger than others;
- [B]Some[/B] kids will be crazy/stupid and do things that can injure others;
- [B]Some[/B] kids will not pay attention and fail to protect themselves; and
- Kids that young are unlikely to learn anything useful that justifies the risks of playing in full pads.

I didn't start playing until I was in 6th grade. Had I decided to "stick" with it, I would not have been at any disadvantage. Indeed, [B]one[/B] of the kids who started in 6th grade managed to become a HS and college All-America. He managed to play a couple of years in the NFL.

There is no reason to expose children to an extra 5 years of hits.[/QUOTE]

You use "some" and "one" to describe situations. That is the point we are trying to make. "Some" and "one" is not all.

Every situation you brought up could be solved by better parenting and coaching. If I don't like what I see, then I should put my kid on a different team. And not to mention that in pee-wee football, it is regulated by weight so there are not kids that are much bigger.

First it was dodge-ball, then it was tag and now it is football. There is a reason why kids are becoming obese wimps. America needs to stop raising kids like they are flowers.

The sport is not the problem, the people are.

[sec.101row23]

[QUOTE=Buster;4478640]IMHO, the NFL’s greatest challenge is middle-income Americans no longer allowing their kids to play football. This and schools charging big fees to play (and thus eliminating poor kids from playing) will cause the NFL ‘long term’ problems.

They need to get the helmet thing sorted out, soon.[/QUOTE]

If the salaries continue to go up as they do every year, there will be enough people wanting to play football. Its not really middle class America where these players come from anyway. Sure there are some that do, but a lot of these guys come from poor backgrounds and do not care about the risks involved.

[Buster]

[QUOTE=sec.101row23;4478656]If the salaries continue to go up as they do every year, there will be enough people wanting to play football. Its not really middle class America where these players come from anyway. Sure there are some that do, but a lot of these guys come from poor backgrounds and do not care about the risks involved.[/QUOTE]

But the eyeballs on the TV and the Butts in the seats and the ears listening to the radio and the folks buying the t-****s mostly come from middle-income America.

In 20 years if those guys don't have those memories of having fun playing football they will be less likely to care and watch.

IMHO

[palmetto defender]

My children all started organized athletics at age 5. Football was not allowed by our local league until age 8.
Each team, which was organized by strict age limits, also had weight limits. There was a weigh in before every game. There was no more than a 20 pound range between the smallest and largest players - as a general rule.
The helmets then and now were quite frankly better than the one I had in college.
There were no head injuries that I recall but lots of black and blues. Don't remember a broken bone either.
Our coaches had to attend a clinic to insure they were up on all the current training and safety procedures. this was the case for every town sport.
Nowadays, a background check is also required to weed out potential pedophiles.
Football does not get to be a real problem from an injury standpoint until HS varsity. College is a tough game. Pro is brutality.

[superbowlbeforeidie]

[QUOTE=Digetydog;4478627]Your use of the words "no brainer" was probably not a good idea.

There is no reason that 7-8 year olds should be playing tackle football in full pads.
- Some kids will be significantly bigger than others;
- Some kids will be crazy/stupid and do things that can injure others;
- Some kids will not pay attention and fail to protect themselves; and
- Kids that young are unlikely to learn anything useful that justifies the risks of playing in full pads.

I didn't start playing until I was in 6th grade. Had I decided to "stick" with it, I would not have been at any disadvantage. Indeed, one of the kids who started in 6th grade managed to become a HS and college All-America. He managed to play a couple of years in the NFL.

There is no reason to expose children to an extra 5 years of hits.[/QUOTE]

I won't retract the use of "no brainer", no pun was intended, but if we are that sensitive about it in this forum, oh well.

Almost everything you documented would probably occur if it was a lord of the flies situtuation, but if you read my previous post, I stated controlled environment.

Weight class is a significant part of little leauge football, and although you can have a disparity of as much as 30 pounds, it's a some what realistic to presume that a 95 pound running back won't be running into a 60 pound defensive lineman. Even then it's all relative to the type of kids you're assigned.

This is especially true in intramural leagues- in addition, the referees in most leagues run by a different set of rules than you normally see at higher levels. There is a huge focus on player safety.Shoot, in some leagues, you need to pull your starting back field if you're up over 18 points, and the d/line has to be back an addtional 5 yards because you can see a disparity in talent/coaching. The kids safety is paramount. And lastly, kids aren't trying to run over each other, they are trying to score. Your best d player is not lighting everybody up like in a high school game, he can't, he's just a lot quicker and coordinated than the others. The biggest factor with severe player injuries, muscle mass, is a moot point because they don't have it. Weight is not indicative of strength at 7 or 8 years old.

Think about all the dumb things we did as kids with our friends unsupervised, and you think that a organized league will cause more injury? I respectfully disagree. Going thru the grind of practice and the disciplines /rules associated with it, these kids are much less likely get injured than in extracurricular football games,without equipment,without authority, and without rules.