[News] Why Football Matters, By John Harbaugh

[samilbourne]

My high school did not have football - but we played plenty of backyard or sandlot football, and our coaches in other sports (soccer, basketball, baseball, etc.) coached us in a similar manner as described by John Harbaugh. I was fortunate to have a caring, loving father who brought me up the right way, but the lessons I and my teammates - especially those without fathers - learned from our coaches while playing team sports have stayed with us forever. They have made my teammates and I who we are today. Anyone that says football or other team sports are a waste of time, in my opinion, have never played them and have no idea what they are talking about. I've never regretted playing (well, maybe my knees and back would disagree at 47 years old) and would gladly do it all again - even today (well, maybe for a few plays). I totally agree with this essay by Harbaugh and I hope it gets national exposure.

[ravenwildman]

I think that football as a sport has evolved to such a high level of physicality and competitiveness that the equipment that was once believed sufficient to protect our kids during play is not as good as we once believed it to be.

 

If, as a culture, we continue to press the levels of strength and endurance (which I can't see us stopping) then we need to develop new technologies to protect our kids and players better.

 

I played football, and loved everything about it, and I know I am better today because I played. But had my mother been provided the flood of information about brain injuries back when I was a boy, she may not have let me play. It's hard justifying any kind of sports injury, that will not change. But the one big scare to parents today is concussion injury. I believe that solving this needs to be a priority. This one issue has the potential to have an serious adverse affect on the future of the NFL.

 

GO RAVENS!

Edited April 26, 2015 by ravenwildman

[J.Flacco#5]

Harbaugh is easily one of the best head coaches in the NFL and it shows from the time he started. The year he got here we got back to the playoffs and he has made us in contention for a ring 6 of the last 7 years and even got us one. Great coach and Great person. Keep it up Harbs.

[bmoraven]

Nicely captured by a coach who talks the talk, and walks the walk when it comes to doing the right thing...If you watch Steve Smith Sr's video with the military guys, you won't have any doubt that Football Matters!! Go Ravens

[n#7]

Well said Coach! After having many heated debates with my female siblings I know in a small way what you're referring too. And my younger brother has a son playing high school football and you'd think he was committing a high crime letting him participate. But he's held fast and the boy has grown in leaps and bounds in his attitude towards life. I won't repeat what you have already gone over re: attributes that you so eloquently put forth but know that it's been a very positive experience just as you have so capably stated.

[die hard raven]

All due respect to Harbaugh, he is a great coach. But if football is all that can save America's youth they are screwed. Football is a great sport and I enjoy watching it but I see negative values in it as well. It is anti - individualism and pro - collectivism. Not a good thing for the individual in real life matters.

[Popeye the sailor man]

It's not only football but in Boxing, MMA, Hockey and many other sports that breeds violent, It's what People pay to see and It will never go away

[lweisenthal]

I respect Coach Harbaugh immensely. He's a great coach and a great person, and he's a member of a great family. But he offers a general, generic defense of the value of competitive athletics in general, while he fails to offer an example of a value which is unique to football. Many other sports require tremendous discipline, hard work, sacrifice, team work, time management skills, and so on -- but do not subject fragile human brains to repetitive physical trauma. And the answer to the latter is not "better helmets." The big problem is acceleration/deceleration forces, which are not mitigated by the most protective helmet. Others have even made a good case for a return to minimalist, "leatherheads" type helmets, which do not give the false impression of security and safety. Rugby players use no helmets at all, but rather use their heads for the process of thinking how to protect their heads, rather than using their heads as battering rams.

[terminatahx]

The America we live in today frowns on masculinity and toughness in men. The media has done a terrible job of reporting on football in an honest matter. The numbers don't lie. Thousands upons thousands of youth play football, at a very high level and very few of them get seriously hurt. As a youth coach (8year olds), I see a consistent pattern in kids and parents: Parents that don't work with their kids athletic development are usually the same parents that come l ate to practice, are entitled and scared to death of injuries. Parents that actively participate in their kids athletic development are usually the same parents that value practice, work ethic, and challenging environments for their kids. And their kids are always the most productive players on the field. I tell parents at the beginning of the season "if you expect football to be completely safe, you should remove your child from football". It's not safe, but neither are alot of activities in America, that provide huge personal rewards. I tell parents to look at the data, and not the media. And while there are many benefits to alot of sports, Football combines teamwork, physicality, intellectual development and mental toughness all into one.

Edited May 14, 2015 by berad
don't have to attack people to make a point

[Coach Tim]

One of the key components of football is leadership. The NFL is at the top of the pecking order when it comes to what people, not just kids size up what's going on with it. The benefits have always outweighed the risks, but every NFL player should be made aware they are the face of football, not just their team, or themselves. So when leaders do it right, others will look at it and say, "This has been a wonderful sport for my kids, family, etc". Otherwise, the minor negative aspects will be football's poster child. So, little league coaches, teach integrity, fundamentals, and leadership. High school coaches, teach, integrity, fundamentals, leadership, and responsibility. College coaches, teach integrity, fundamentals, leadership, responsibility, and respect for all. NFL coaches, teach it all, and more.