Usually, I end up not regretting the blog posts that I don't write, usually because of lack of time or whatever; this time, it's different. I had meant to say something back in October about the Eagles' Brian Westbrook and his concussions, the idea being that everyone seemed a little too focused on the question of how quickly the Birds were going to get their star running back back out on the playing field, and not focused enough on the issue of keeping Westbrook healthy for a long and productive life after the NFL. Unfortunately, like a lot of us, the sports compartment of my brain back then was 100 percent filled with the Phillies in the World Series and I never got around to writing about it. Of course, what happened next was sad but unsurprising. Westbrook did return quickly, almost immediately suffered a second concussion, and now everyone is talking about whether he should retire.
Sam Donnellon thinks so, and I agree:
I am not a neurologist, nor do I play one in print or on television. But if "the No. 1 thing is Brian's health," as Andy Reid said yesterday, then there really is only one thing for Brian Westbrook to do:
Retire. Immediately.
Yep. For the last few weeks there was a striking disconnent between the real world where the NFL is doing a terrible job of explaining its problems with head injuries and the high rates of early dementia, depression, suicide, and other related problems for some players after they retire, and Philadelphia, where that story was downplayed even as the question of how quickly could the concussion-afflicted Westbrook could play again was the main (non-Phillies) sports story in town, night after night.
Donnellon helps bring us up to speed:
Rep. Linda Sanchez, D-Calif., played a TV interview of [Dr. Ira] Casson [the NFL's paid expert] during the hearings in which he denied evidence of a link between multiple head injuries in NFL players with brain disorders such as dementia and Alzheimer's. She likened it to tobacco companies denying a link between smoking and health damage in the 1990s.
Ultimately, the decision is Westbrook's, as it should be. We don't -- and shouldn't -- live in a world where we simply shut down any kind of risky behavior; we're always going to have auto racers and mountain climbers and thrill seekers [like Steve Irwin, for example] who know there's a significant element of danger in what they do, but do it because it's part of their reason for living in the first place. In the case of Westbrook, he deserves the best medical care and the best -- and most realistic -- advice on earth, so he can make an informed decision.
But Westbrook has already accomplished great things on a football field that we merely mortals could only dream of, scoring a touchdown in the Super Bowl and peeling off some of the greatest plays in Eagles' history. It's time for him -- and for Philadelphia -- to start focusing on what comes next.
I particularly like the clip where he takes a knee at the one to keep the clock running. What a great player, who has always had his head in the game more than his befuddled coach (and QB).— Talking point sleuth
Comment removed.
The best Medical care? Well he's not going to get that here. You know, insurance companies, and all. Off to Cuba, I guess.— jmc- ---}}} Will how would you feel if someone told you to retire? {{{--- LOL! It happens multiple times in every thread (at minimum, everytime batboy posts a comment), and Will seems to survive OK, jwad. Why do "conservatives" always so worried about people's "feelings." Oh, and read this article, jwad, and let us know if you think B-West should retire: http://www.newyorker.com/reporting/2009/10/19/091019fa_fact_gladwell— Talking point sleuth
- Comment removed.
- "Will how would you feel if someone told you to retire?" LOL, it happens here every day! And you know what, some day about 35 years from now, that person will be right, and I'll be grateful for the good advice!— will
- Let's hope that LeSean can take the baton and carry it forward with some semblance of B-West's talent.— legatus
- TAKE A.........."Some of the president's critics are giving him a hard time, and it's true that this president seems never to have studied much American history. Not bowing to foreign potentates was what 1776 was all about. His predecessors learned with no difficulty that the essence of America is that all men stand equal and are entitled to look even a king, maybe particularly a king, straight in the eye. Can anyone imagine George Washington, John Adams or Thomas Jefferson making a similar gesture of servile submission? Or Harry Truman? Or FDR, who famously served the lowly hot dog, with ballpark mustard, to the king and queen of England? John F. Kennedy, on the eve of a trip to London, sharply warned Jackie not to curtsy to the queen."— Manny Trillo
- If the Eagles had run the ball more over the last five years, Westbrook's career would have already been over.— SteveMG
- Comment removed.
- Two words for the doubters WRT closed-head injuries: Muhammad Ali. Another two words: Chris Benoit, whose autopsy showed his brain looked like that of an elderly dementia patient (http://www.wsbtv.com/news/14047066/detail.html).— Phoenix Woman
- Comment removed.
- ---}}} Read some history before you regurgitate everything you hear on Fox News, will you please? {{{--- Diddy-B: What makes you think Manny can read?— Talking point sleuth
Will Bunch, a senior writer at the Philadelphia Daily News, blogs about his obsessions, including national and local politics and world affairs, the media, pop music, the Philadelphia Phillies, soccer and other sports, not necessarily in that order.
E-mail Will by clicking here.
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