‘Nuisance’ injury
In his six seasons with the Minnesota Vikings, Boyd suffered a number of concussions— one was so bad, it left him temporarily blinded. “We didn’t even count concussions or keep track of them back then, a concussion was not considered a serious injury. A concussion was a ‘nuisance’ injury … you surely didn’t think getting dinged was going to affect you the rest of your life, and in fact in my case, destroy my life.”
Boyd suffers from migraines, depression, fatigue, and dizziness. His condition is so bad he cannot hold a job, and was actually homeless for a time. When he filed his disability claim, someone at the NFL Players Association told him not to bother. Says Boyd, “Her exact words were ‘the owners will never open that can of worms’ by granting a claim for concussions.”
Ron Wolfley enjoyed a ten-year career in the NFL, playing for the Cardinals, the Browns, and the Rams. “For all the years I played football, I never sustained a major injury,” he says. “Sure, I had my share of bumps and bruises, and I did have a few concussions, but I was never injured to the point where I couldn’t play.” Wolfley believes he may have some minor residual effects of those concussions, particularly memory loss. Today, Wolfley hosts KTAR’s Doug and Ron Show, a sports radio program on KTAR in Phoenix.
‘Do the right thing’
Wolfley has faith in the NFL. “I know the NFL and the player’s union will do the right thing. They will step up and do what’s right for the players and what’s right for the game. Football is too big and too important a part of American sports for them not to.” Says Wolfley, “I felt that I was blessed to have been able to play in the NFL. It was a great experience. Let’s face it, football is a dangerous sport. There’s not one guy who suits up in an NFL uniform who doesn’t understand the possibility that they may not walk off the field after the game. It is brutal, and when you play at that level, you know that going in.”
Long-term risks
Knowing the sport is dangerous is one thing, but Chris Nowinski feels players don’t know enough about the long-term risks of concussions. Nowinski played football for Harvard University and has the distinction of being the only arvard-educated pro-wrestler in World Wrestling Entertainment.
Nowinski’s athletic career came to an abrupt end as a result of multiple concussions. His book Head Games: Football’s Concussion Crisis is quickly becoming required reading for players at all levels. Says Nowinski, “Athletes and families need to be educated about this problem. We need to inform players on what to do to minimize concussions.
Right now we send athletes back into the game after suffering a concussion and make heroes out of them. That’s a huge mistake. We should be letting their brains recover.” NFL commissioner Roger Goodell recently announced new league guidelines regarding concussions. Says Nowinski, “The NFL has gone about 10% of the way. To admit that concussions are a problem enough to have mandatory psycho-neurological testing is one thing, but to not say that there’s any link between long-term problems is misleading and sends an incredibly mixed message to the athletes.”
Not just the NFL
Nowinski’s concern goes beyond the NFL; college and high school players need to know the risks as well. “Education is inexpensive and it makes sense to do that just to make the game safer for everybody,” he says.