Ryan Craddock had seen his share of tragedy during two decades as a coal miner and firefighter.
Then came the toughest heartbreak of all: his own.
Craddock and his family are mourning the loss of his 13-year-old son, Cohen, who died from brain trauma last month after making a tackle during football practice at his middle school.
Cohen’s death, and the death of a 16-year-old Alabama high school player from a brain injury on the same day, have sparked renewed debate about whether the safety risks of youths playing football outweigh the benefits that the sport brings to a community.
I worked with a few sports medicine doctors, one who was a NFL team doctor and the other was a neurologist with the NFL’s head trauma research.
I asked them about the gear and it was basically what you said. I wondered aloud if going back to leather helmets and minimal plastic gear would help and they both agreed it would greatly reduce the damage but the power of money and culture make it impossible to make the sport safe in a realistic way
It’s a bankrupt culture that sends its youth into danger for entertainment and profit. It’s sick.
Funny enough, it was a sport conceived on making boys ready for war …