With the likes of Chris Borland and Patrick Willis retiring in past weeks, we asked former Ohio players if it changed their view on playing in the NFL at all.
During the past few weeks, more concerns over injuries from playing professional football have been raised with the retirements of some of the game’s younger players.
One of the most recent examples came when San Francisco 49ers linebacker Chris Borland retired after playing just one season in the NFL. Borland said that after doing a lot of research, he decided the risk involved in playing professional football outweighed the potential rewards.
In particular, Borland was concerned about long-term risks of repetitive head trauma. Brain and head injuries have been a growing concern in the NFL, with multiple retired players being diagnosed with Chronic Traumatic Encephalopathy (CTE), which leads to the deterioration of the brain as the result of repetitive trauma.
There have been other cases as well, such as All-Pro linebacker Patrick Willis (also of the 49ers), who recently retired after eight seasons in the NFL due to concerns over foot injuries. The Tennessee Titans’ Jake Locker also announced his retirement from the league at the age of 26 after battling leg and shoulder injuries.
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As these players in the NFL start to retire at younger ages, it begs the question if it will deter players from wanting to play in the league.
“I think those guys were being smart, but to each his own,” former Ohio defensive tackle Cameron McLeod said. “They have to do what’s best for them and I have to do what’s best for me.”
McLeod, along with fellow former Bobcat defensive tackle Antwan Crutcher, were the centerpieces of last week’s NFL Pro Day at Walter Fieldhouse. While they are unlikely to be selected in this year’s draft, both are projected to at least be with a team in training camp.
For Crutcher, this is a culmination of a lifelong dream to play in the league, and he is willing to put aside the risks in order to play the game at the highest level.
“Maybe I’m still clouded because I love the game, so it might be clouded because I still want to play the game,” Crutcher said. “I’ve been doing this since I was 9 and it doesn’t bother me. Maybe I have to get a little bit of experience to wake me up, but right now I’m playing the game that I have loved my whole life.”
Although the NFL has taken steps to help make the game safer over the past few years, there is still no formal program that explains all of the inherent risks involved with playing professional football. The research and decision-making is still primarily left up to the players themselves.
For some, the chance to play in the NFL is too enticing to turn away the opportunity, as it is something they don’t want to regret later in life.
“If I get a call, I get a call, but if I don’t...” running back Tim Edmond said. “Personally, I wanted to do this so I could tell my kids one day that their father went to the best of his abilities and went to the highest level. He got that shot and didn’t make it, but he tried. Just basically to tell (them) to never give up.”
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