NFL’s Negligent Culture Shown In RG3, Junior Seau Cases
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By DERON SNYDER (as published in The Washington Times)
Football is a violent and dangerous game. I get that. But there has been too much misdirection in the aftermath of Robert Griffin III going down against Seattle.
It’s not hindsight if you questioned the wisdom of continuing to play Griffin after his injured right knee buckled in the first quarter.
It’s not second-guessing if you thought calling his number on running plays foolishly put additional strain on the knee.
And it’s not looking in the rear-view mirror if you believed injury-induced ineffectiveness — not just the risk of further damage — should have led to his benching before the fateful fourth quarter.
Everyone acknowledges the perils of padded human beings slamming into each other repeatedly for 60 minutes. You don’t need abundant foresight to know that bones, brains, limbs and ligaments are put in harm’s way.
The evidence speaks for itself every week as NFL teams report on their wounded.
But the inevitability of injuries doesn’t absolve the league, coaches or players when they disregard preventive measures. While it’s unclear how much pain can be avoided, that’s no excuse for acting as if we’ve learned nothing over the years.
