NFL Symposium: Rookies warned against risks of hiding concussions, other injuries – NFL News
A clear message out of the 15th consecutive symposium of the National Football League (NFL) to rookies coming off the 2012 draft is: Please do not take lightly or hide their head injuries.
Dr Mark Schickendantz, the head physician of the Cleveland Browns, in his address at the NFL seminar on health and safety aimed at increasing awareness about concussions among the rookies, warned the first-year players against risks of
hiding concussions.
He said:
"Don't try to hide it. A little ding is not just a little ding."
Mark said the rookies will be made through to a base test at the training camps and they should disclose all information regarding the head injuries without getting into the seriousness of the injury.
He further offered information and advice on risks attached to use of banned substance, heat and hydration.
Schickendantz, who was among many other speakers attending the seminar, emphasised that it is in the interest of players to disclose their injuries.
The issue of hiding head injuries by players became a topic of heated debate in the league last season.
It emerged for the first time when the Cleveland Browns let quarterback, Colt McCoy, resume his game without testing him for concussion, and he played the rest of the game with the injury.
It eventually prompted a league enquiry of the team’s facilities, finding a system’s failure, but luckily Browns escaped the possibility of any punishment over the lapse.
Following the investigations, a number of former players claimed that professional players deliberately hide concussions. They explained the main reason behind their drastic choice is to help their chances of continually playing, due to
the fear of financial hardships or otherwise.
In case of detection of the head injury, a player needs from six to nine months’ rest, meaning he is unable to play during that period. This affects his financial standing, having a negative impact on his family budget and expense.
This was a rather shocking disclosure and prompted the league to take measures to spread awareness about risks of letting the head injuries go undetected and untreated.
It is pertinent to mention here that the NFL is facing more than a dozen lawsuits from former players, who have accused the office over its concussion policies.
The players have claimed in their suits that the league’s policies failed in protecting them from those injuries and caused a number of problems for them and their families in the longer run.
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