Junior Seau has apparently committed suicide, according to article on ESPN. Such a shame. Hoping he is at peace.
Junior Seau has apparently committed suicide, according to article on ESPN. Such a shame. Hoping he is at peace.
It says that Junior was shot (shot himself?) in the chest. There was another football player a few years back who did the same thing (e.g., shooting himself in the chest) so that his brain would be in tact and could be studied in a lab. Any idea if Junior has the same wishes?
This is not 8 members of the 1994 Chargers who are dead.
My Quick Smells Like French Toast.
That was former Bear Dave Duerson, who died last year. He said in a text message to his family that he wanted to leave his brain intact to be studied for CTE (chronic traumatic encephalopathy). Tests did confirm that he had some sort of degenerative neurological condition caused by too many concussions.
It's all really sad. We don't know for sure that Junior had the same thoughts in his mind, but if he did, then it speaks volumes about what the rigors of playing football does to these athletes. We're losing our legends, and it seems that no one can really figure out why before it's too late. I hope Junior has at last found peace, though it's sad that it had to come to this.
Plummer says he estimates that Seau had about 1500 concussions in his 20 years as an NFL linebacker. Plummer estimates about 1000 for himself over his 15 years.
Seau's family has announced that they've donated his brain to medical research to see what impact football had on it over the years. The link mentions that Duerson's brain was been studied and he suffered from a neurodegenerative disease linked to concussions.
The NFL and the NCAA need to get serious about these concussions.
The NFLPA is not being inconsistent. They no doubt agree that deliberate injuries are worthy of punishment. In practice, though, since the level of punishment varies and the rule application varies, including the underlying conduct, they have to take each of these grievances individually.
They would still negotiate over and agree to safety rules and even punishment levels. They only argue about whether indvidual players deserve the punishment issued by the Commish or the team.