As much as everyone enjoys watching college football on Saturday’s and NFL football on Sunday’s, I’m sure they want their kids to be the people they see on tv. Let’s take a second to think about it though… Is the sport of football really safe for your kid? Is the sport of football dangerous in general? As studies show, that in high school football programs out of every 1,000 kids, 4 of them sustained an injury from football. In the NCAA, 8 out of every 1,000 sustained an injury(Nationwide Children’s Hospital).

Youth football is not safe for your kid. As there is a story about Owen Thomas who first started playing tackle football as a nine year old. “He loved to go into practice and hit very hard” recalls his mother, Kathy Brearley”(Hard Knocks). Owen Thomas ended up taking his own life, and the doctors found that his brain was going through Chronic Traumatic Encephalopathy (CTE) which is common in retired NFL football players. Even though it might not be common in young people such as Owen Thomas, but if you play football your entire life, hitting your head like that can’t be safe. Concussions are also very common in youth, high school, college, and NFL football.

No piece of football equipment is going to prevent a concussion. “Concussions are more dangerous for teenagers because, studies show, their brain tissue is less developed than adults’ and more easily damaged”(Brain Damage, Pure and Simple). As the title says, brain damage, pure and simple, it does not tell a lie about the problem with youth football. The article also talks about how the game can be made safer, but how can it be made safer by reducing hits to the head, but everyone looks for that big hit. In youth football, you’re taught not to hit with your head as it can lead to head or neck injuries, and even death, but if you turn on your tv today and put on some good College Football, or NFL, you’re going to see them all hitting with their helmets and lowering their heads.

The two most vulnerable positions in football are running backs and linebackers, as linebackers are always trying to make the play as well as the running backs are. (How dangerous is High School Football), “If this debilitating brain disease can be caused by repeated hits to the head that don’t rise to the level of a concussion- an intrinsic part of football at every level-is it even possible to make the game safe?”(hard knocks). And the answer to that question is no.

More in depth, there are actually ways to make the game safer. Pop Warner enacted a rule back in 2012, so that there are no full speed head on blocking or tackling drills in practice, and no intentional head to head contact. Their other rule that was added at the same time was The amount of contact at each practice is limited to ⅓ of practice time. (With proper oversight, youth football is safe) As that can limit concussions and other head or neck injuries. It also teaches the kids to not be animals and hit each other and hurt them.

Is Football really safe? The question will always be up in the air, as people are always coming up with new ways to prevent all sorts of injuries. New helmets new pads, new rules and new regulations will always keep the game running, and i don’t think it would ever be outlawed that youth football is no longer allowed. You can sit on one end of the seesaw and choose your side whether football is dangerous or safe.