A year ago our city was tethered to plight of Damar Hamlin, the Buffalo Bills player who required CPR during Monday Night Football . I wrote some of the following the night of the game but was hesitant to publish it not knowing how he’d fare. Now that we’re one year removed and he even played this past season, I feel like I can now offer these thoughts.
Among the many questions raised about the incident was concerning football itself. Media outlets wondered if the sport is just too violent. What does our fascination with football say about our country? Is it just to brutal to be truly enjoyable?
My personal journey with football is a winding road. I loved it as a child and a teen, but landed on soccer as my sport of choice. I continued to watch both college and pro but, after witnessing undeniable brutality, as well as grappling with the reality of too many retired players dealing with traumatic brain injury, I’ll admit that my once unquestioned love for the sport began to wane.
Yet this all changed a few years ago when our daughter told her mother and I that she wanted to play football. Her high school team needed a place kicker and, as a soccer player, she was able and excited to play. While we were a little cautious at first, she had a good first season. Even though she took a couple of hits when blocking broke down, I was never really concerned for her safety. She was the first female to score in the history of her school’s varsity program.
Things changed in her second season. She wasn’t getting as many reps kicking so she started practicing with the linebacking core. Since the JV squad lacked depth at that position, she had the chance to get playing time on defense.
I honestly didn’t know how to feel about it. At least at the JV level, the pace of play was slower. But seeing her receive her first forceful block from an offensive lineman made me shudder. Afterward, she bounced right back up and lined up for the next play. By the end of the season, she had played about thirty snaps. She was part of two team tackles and nearly made a solo tackle (needed to go for the legs).
In her final season, she played JV linebacker again. She started a few games and, against a much bigger lineman who had no qualms about blowing up a chick in shoulder pads, she only lasted a couple of plays. While the conclusion of her career left us with precious memories, the Hamlin incident left me thinking about this whole experiment my daughter has undertaken. I love her for being so bold but I can’t be naïve that she could get hurt in this conquest.
In the end, we fans of the game would do well to value player safety higher than we currently do. When the helmet-to-helmet hit is penalized, I should do more than hope my team is on the benefiting side. Football is a wonderful sport, but it is truly brutal. The long-term health of its participants should always carry more weight than wins and losses.
Violent Delights . . . Violent Ends