One of the biggest concerns in the world of sports, mainly football, is concussions. Out of 2,552 retired football players, 61 percent had suffered at least one concussion in their careers, according to a recent survey. Some players, such as former Philadelphia Eagles star defensive back Andre Waters, suppress their concussions for so long that they commit suicide or have depression for the rest of their lives.

Concussions are more recently caused by a single, hard head to head blows in football games instead of repeated somewhat hard blows. The necessary wait time for a player to get back on the field is one game minimum. Unfortunately, football coaches all over the country often try to put players with concussions back in too soon, which usually leads to a worse injury and, in serious cases, permanent brain damage.

In my opinion, players should never suppress concussions from coaches. If you are a great player, you and your team may pay for the decision to suppress your concussion heavily down the road. You might miss a whole season and your team will suffer a huge loss just because you made a decision you thought would help the team. Now that’s irony. Also, I think coaches should never put players with concussions in because they feel better before their week is up. They may feel better, but the conditions and symptoms may still linger. No football game is important enough to risk permanent brain damage. Clearly, concussions are dangerous and, when handled incorrectly, can truly be killers of football.

~Michael Toscano