Should Tackle Football Be Banned?

One of the news stories getting the most attention in the twitter world this morning is a GMA story about a retired doctor who has said that it is "a moral imperitive that we at least begin the process of ending this game" in high schools. The game he was talking about? Football! This doctor, Dr. Paul Butler, says that the research is too obvious that football is a dangerous game for underage kids to be playing.

ESPN says that some of the blows that even high schoolers can take to the head are the equivalent of getting hit in the skull with a sledgehammer.

This is what happens when you marry outside your team...

Even players like Tom Brady are advocating for new rules and safer equipment for players, as seen in this absolutely hilarious NFL Evolution commercial!

Here is the twitter conversation on GMA's status about this. No one, at least in this twitter feed, is interested in banning football! It's fascinating to me that the research obviously says that kids are getting hurt by the tackling, but people love football so much they don't want to stop it. Do these people love the sport more than their kids?

I love football! Any of you who know me know that I am a massive Patriots fan. My fiancé and I are such big football fans that we had our engagement photos done in our jerseys (we love our quarterbacks: Brady and Rodgers)! But when we have kids, if tackle football is still being played in youth leagues and high schools, I'm not sure if we will allow them to play. I played flag football and touch football growing up--I didn't really play tackle until college (full disclosure: I had to quit the team before we played a game). I had an absolute blast playing touch and flag. We had a youth flag football league in my town and it was fun--and safe.

There are also a lot of other sports that are available to kids: track, soccer (heading is under fire, too, though), volleyball, field hockey, basketball, etc. I am very aware that all of these sports have athletes in them who get hurt. The difference to me is that the premise of these sports is not to intentionally run into other players. It happens, sure, but it's not the point of these games.

So, what do you think? Is it worth risking your son or daughter's life or brain function so we can continue to watch tackle football in high schools? Please weigh in!

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"Be the change you wish to see in the world." --Gandhi

All photos by Bailey Richards.