Watching the NFL and Feeling... A Little Guilty About it

Did you see the story at the start of this football season where longtime college football analyst Ed Cunningham walked away from calling games? This was a respected and presumably well-paid professional who had worked for nearly 20 years for ABC and ESPN. In an article in the NY Times, Cunningham is quoted as saying he just doesn't want to be a part of football anymore:

“In its current state, there are some real dangers: broken limbs, wear and tear,” Cunningham said. “But the real crux of this is that I just don’t think the game is safe for the brain. To me, it’s unacceptable.”

This story came and went as the NFL and college football season started. Most football fans got back into watching games and not worrying too much about the long-term physical impact of the game on those who play it. But for me that story has lingered in my mind.

Specifically what I find troubling is the amount of times that players are literally carted off the field. We've gotten used to sights such as these but should we be used to them? Think about what's happening there for a moment. A guy is playing a sport and has been injured so badly that he can't walk off the playing field, he's carried. Sometimes these are minor injuries, sometimes they are worse, such as the career-and-perhaps-life threatening injury sustained by Ryan Shazier.

As fans, we have a choice to make. Most of us who have followed football all their lives have taken injuries as simply part of the game. This is true in all sports, but none like football have been identified as the source of devastating long-term physical decline. And then you have to ask yourself, 'am I comfortable watching this?' or 'How bad would it need to be for me to walk way from watching?'

For me personally, I still enjoy watching football. I watch it knowing that what I'm watching is often barbaric and sometimes upsetting. It is also tremendously exciting, dramatic and fun. Watching a close football game go down to the last play is one of the most heart-thumping experiences you can have as a sports fan. So I'm not going to sit here on a high horse and look down on those who follow and like football.

But I also have started, perhaps just this year, to feel a bit guilty in watching the game. For the first time, I've started to feel like watching football is just a tad... wrong. We are watching men wreck their bodies and perhaps even their minds for our entertainment. Some of them are millionaires or will be millionaires. Even so, no amount of money can replace a person's health once it's been destroyed.

So... what are we to do as sports fans? Is it time to turn our backs on football the way we might turn away from something obviously amoral like dog fighting? Or do we enjoy it with the same zeal and enthusiasm as ever? After all, at this point, the men playing cannot say they don't know the risks. The risks have been made clear and they are accepting them.

I have no easy answers, only questions. One thing I do know is that I have pulled back from watching and following the game with as much enthusiasm as in the past. And for the first time, I think discussions about the points I'm referencing are happening in living rooms and at league and team offices across the country.

What I hope, as a fan, is that the NFL and NCAA continue to acknowledge the unique health risks that football presents and work together to make the sport safer.