By Josh Peter, Yahoo! Sports
April 21, 2007
MARINA DEL REY, Calif. - Leigh Steinberg stood in front of the country's leading experts on concussions and told a story that drove home a point the way no research could.
It was January 1994, and Troy Aikman had suffered a concussion during the NFC championship game. While the rest of the Dallas Cowboys were celebrating their victory over the San Francisco 49ers, Aikman was undergoing tests to determine the severity of the head injury he'd suffered while being sacked during the game. Steinberg, the well-known agent who represented Aikman, drove to the hospital to visit his marquee client. Thus began their exchange.
Aikman: "Did we play a football game today?''
Steinberg: "Yes.''
Aikman: "How did we do?''
Steinberg: "You did well.''
Aikman: "What does that mean?''
Steinberg: "You're going to the Super Bowl.''
Five minutes later, Aikman had a few more questions.
"Did we play a football game today?''
"How did we do?''
"What does that mean?''
Five minutes later, Aikman repeated the same questions yet again. It was clear the concussion, which published reports described as "mild," had at least temporarily robbed Aikman of his memory. The moment shook Steinberg. It also spurred him to act. A crusade began.
What Al Gore is to global warming, Steinberg is to football-related concussions. He organized a conference more than a decade ago to discuss the issue, Steinberg recalled, and one NFL medical official dismissed it as "fear mongering.'' Of course that's the same thing critics have said of Gore.
Last week, Steinberg served as the keynote speaker at the first National Concussion Summit, which drew the leading experts in the field. As speaker after speaker presented evidence of the frightening, long-term effects of concussions, it became clear that the NFL no longer can ignore An Inconvenient Truth: The same violence that helped turn the league into a multibillion-dollar business has debilitated players and, in some cases, perhaps led to suicide and premature death.
In January, two months after former NFL defensive back Andre Waters committed suicide, a forensic pathologist who studied Waters' brain concluded that brain damage caused on the football field led to the suicide.
In February, former NFL linebacker Ted Johnson cited multiple concussions as the reason he regularly forgets people's names, misses appointments and suffers from depression and an addiction to amphetamines. Johnson, who helped lead the New England Patriots to three Super Bowls, said he decided to go public after reading the
reports about Waters.
Later that month, Dr. Elliot Pellman resigned as chairman of the NFL's research committee on concussions after published reports revealed Pellman had no expertise in neurology and his credentials came under scrutiny. Now, the issue of concussions and how seriously the NFL is taking them has come under scrutiny. Perhaps owners and other league officials will begin to feel the guilt Steinberg once did.
By negotiating multimillion-dollar contracts, Steinberg enriched himself and helped secure his clients' financial future. But when he visited Aikman in the hospital, he realized Aikman and the others were putting their long-term health at serious risk as they suffered a series of brain-scrambling concussions.
"Unconscionable'' is how Steinberg described the notion of neglecting the issue of concussions. So he became the gadfly, the hornet buzzing the NFL's ear, the siren call for rules and regulations that would help reduce the number of concussions in the NFL. Critics called him an alarmist. But Steinberg earned widespread respect from the medical community, not only for his efforts but also for his understanding of
the concussions and one of the greatest dangers - secondary concussion trauma.
Research shows those still recovering from a concussion are more likely to suffer a second concussion, and this becomes especially dangerous in football, where the culture promotes playing through pain and returning to the field as soon as possible rather than as soon as advisable. That, Steinberg pointed out, is what led to Steve Young's retirement in 2000. One week after suffering a concussion, Young returned to action. He left the field after suffering another concussion, and weeks later he continued to suffer from dizziness and other symptoms related to the head injury. His career was over.
"The perfect storm'' is what Steinberg calls the period during which one is highly susceptible to a second and more damaging concussion. But for those trying to bring attention to the dangers of concussions, "the perfect storm'' is also an apt description of this moment in time.
Waters, 44, retired from the NFL in 1993. Since then, the players have gotten bigger, stronger and faster, and the on-field collisions have gotten even more vicious. Based on Waters' case, the worst is yet to come.
Between the time Waters retired and the time he committed suicide - succumbing to depression and the early stages of Alzheimer's disease that a forensic scientist attributed to concussions - almost 15 years passed. So, as the human missiles who take the field now and collide with unprecedented force, one might not see the extent of the damage for another 15 years.
"It's a ticking time bomb,'' Steinberg said.
The problem goes beyond the NFL. Research shows there are more concussions in cycling and motor sports than in football. And concussions are as common as ring girls in the world of boxing and ultimate fighting. But by virtue of football being the nation's most popular sport, the NFL must take the lead.
Instead of pointing fingers, however, the experts who gathered here last week presented findings. There was data and video and photographs, a dizzying array of evidence that the experts said confirmed the frightening consequences of concussions.
Then there were the photographs of Andre Waters' brain, the four pieces examined by Bennet Omalu, the forensic pathologist from the University of Pittsburgh who determined that concussion-related trauma led Waters to commit suicide. Omalu also examined the brains of Mike Webster and Terry Long, the two former Pittsburgh Steelers who were discovered to have suffered brain trauma. Long killed himself in 2005, and Webster died of heart failure in 2002, and Omalu came armed with the autopsy photos.
But during the conference, the most disturbing thing was this: The NFL Players Association, the organization charged with protecting the players' interests, sent no representative. The NFL did little better.
The Sports Concussion Institute, which is based in Marina Del Rey and sponsored the event, sent an invitation to the owners and head trainers of each of the NFL's 32 teams. None attended.
But Mark Lovell, the team doctor for the Pittsburgh Steelers and a member of the league's research committee for concussions, did attend. He said he recently met with NFL commissioner Roger Goodell and predicted that Goodell will be "proactive'' when it comes to addressing the issue of concussions.
Those urging him to address the issue go beyond Steinberg and the medical community. Also in attendance at the summit was Warren Moon, the Hall of Fame quarterback who's working with the Sports Concussion Institute. Moon said he's hopeful and recalled a game a couple of years ago involving the Seattle Seahawks. Shaun Alexander, the team's starting running back, left the game after suffering a blow to the helmet. Later, Alexander ran up and down the sideline as if demonstrating he was prepared to return to the field.
But he never got back in the game, Moon said, apparently because the team's medical staff deemed it too risky.
"I think it's definitely getting better, but I think there's a lot more that needs to be done,'' he said.
As far as Steinberg is concerned, the NFL should do the following:
# Require teams to test the neurocognitive state of each player, which would allow physicians to see how levels changed after head-related injuries.
# Leave medical experts in charge of determining whether players should return to the field rather than allowing players who feel obligated to play through the pain to return.
# Require neurological experts to be on the field to evaluate players after head-related injuries.
# Educate players and other officials on the dangers of concussions, thereby forcing all stakeholders to take the issue more seriously.
Yet despite all the evidence pointing to concussions as a serious issue, skeptics might return to the story Steinberg told about Aikman. A week after suffering a concussion that temporarily robbed him of his memory and blurred his vision, Aikman completed 19 of 27 passes for 207 yards and the Cowboys beat the Buffalo Bills in Super Bowl XXVIII.
In 2001, Aikman retired after suffering the ninth concussion of his career. Today, neither he nor Steve Young - who suffered seven concussions in the NFL - show any outward signs of concussion-related damage. Both serve as TV commentators during the NFL season, and they come across as articulate and alert. Confronting Steinberg with this creates a delicate moment.
"Maybe they just started with more brain cells than the rest of us," he offered, smiling.
But as the smile receded, one could sense what Steinberg was thinking. Evidence suggests the effects of brain-related injuries can worsen over time. So for Aikman, Young and hundreds of other NFL players, the worst may be yet to come.
April 21, 2007
MARINA DEL REY, Calif. - Leigh Steinberg stood in front of the country's leading experts on concussions and told a story that drove home a point the way no research could.
It was January 1994, and Troy Aikman had suffered a concussion during the NFC championship game. While the rest of the Dallas Cowboys were celebrating their victory over the San Francisco 49ers, Aikman was undergoing tests to determine the severity of the head injury he'd suffered while being sacked during the game. Steinberg, the well-known agent who represented Aikman, drove to the hospital to visit his marquee client. Thus began their exchange.
Aikman: "Did we play a football game today?''
Steinberg: "Yes.''
Aikman: "How did we do?''
Steinberg: "You did well.''
Aikman: "What does that mean?''
Steinberg: "You're going to the Super Bowl.''
Five minutes later, Aikman had a few more questions.
"Did we play a football game today?''
"How did we do?''
"What does that mean?''
Five minutes later, Aikman repeated the same questions yet again. It was clear the concussion, which published reports described as "mild," had at least temporarily robbed Aikman of his memory. The moment shook Steinberg. It also spurred him to act. A crusade began.
What Al Gore is to global warming, Steinberg is to football-related concussions. He organized a conference more than a decade ago to discuss the issue, Steinberg recalled, and one NFL medical official dismissed it as "fear mongering.'' Of course that's the same thing critics have said of Gore.
Last week, Steinberg served as the keynote speaker at the first National Concussion Summit, which drew the leading experts in the field. As speaker after speaker presented evidence of the frightening, long-term effects of concussions, it became clear that the NFL no longer can ignore An Inconvenient Truth: The same violence that helped turn the league into a multibillion-dollar business has debilitated players and, in some cases, perhaps led to suicide and premature death.
In January, two months after former NFL defensive back Andre Waters committed suicide, a forensic pathologist who studied Waters' brain concluded that brain damage caused on the football field led to the suicide.
In February, former NFL linebacker Ted Johnson cited multiple concussions as the reason he regularly forgets people's names, misses appointments and suffers from depression and an addiction to amphetamines. Johnson, who helped lead the New England Patriots to three Super Bowls, said he decided to go public after reading the
reports about Waters.
Later that month, Dr. Elliot Pellman resigned as chairman of the NFL's research committee on concussions after published reports revealed Pellman had no expertise in neurology and his credentials came under scrutiny. Now, the issue of concussions and how seriously the NFL is taking them has come under scrutiny. Perhaps owners and other league officials will begin to feel the guilt Steinberg once did.
By negotiating multimillion-dollar contracts, Steinberg enriched himself and helped secure his clients' financial future. But when he visited Aikman in the hospital, he realized Aikman and the others were putting their long-term health at serious risk as they suffered a series of brain-scrambling concussions.
"Unconscionable'' is how Steinberg described the notion of neglecting the issue of concussions. So he became the gadfly, the hornet buzzing the NFL's ear, the siren call for rules and regulations that would help reduce the number of concussions in the NFL. Critics called him an alarmist. But Steinberg earned widespread respect from the medical community, not only for his efforts but also for his understanding of
the concussions and one of the greatest dangers - secondary concussion trauma.
Research shows those still recovering from a concussion are more likely to suffer a second concussion, and this becomes especially dangerous in football, where the culture promotes playing through pain and returning to the field as soon as possible rather than as soon as advisable. That, Steinberg pointed out, is what led to Steve Young's retirement in 2000. One week after suffering a concussion, Young returned to action. He left the field after suffering another concussion, and weeks later he continued to suffer from dizziness and other symptoms related to the head injury. His career was over.
"The perfect storm'' is what Steinberg calls the period during which one is highly susceptible to a second and more damaging concussion. But for those trying to bring attention to the dangers of concussions, "the perfect storm'' is also an apt description of this moment in time.
Waters, 44, retired from the NFL in 1993. Since then, the players have gotten bigger, stronger and faster, and the on-field collisions have gotten even more vicious. Based on Waters' case, the worst is yet to come.
Between the time Waters retired and the time he committed suicide - succumbing to depression and the early stages of Alzheimer's disease that a forensic scientist attributed to concussions - almost 15 years passed. So, as the human missiles who take the field now and collide with unprecedented force, one might not see the extent of the damage for another 15 years.
"It's a ticking time bomb,'' Steinberg said.
The problem goes beyond the NFL. Research shows there are more concussions in cycling and motor sports than in football. And concussions are as common as ring girls in the world of boxing and ultimate fighting. But by virtue of football being the nation's most popular sport, the NFL must take the lead.
Instead of pointing fingers, however, the experts who gathered here last week presented findings. There was data and video and photographs, a dizzying array of evidence that the experts said confirmed the frightening consequences of concussions.
Then there were the photographs of Andre Waters' brain, the four pieces examined by Bennet Omalu, the forensic pathologist from the University of Pittsburgh who determined that concussion-related trauma led Waters to commit suicide. Omalu also examined the brains of Mike Webster and Terry Long, the two former Pittsburgh Steelers who were discovered to have suffered brain trauma. Long killed himself in 2005, and Webster died of heart failure in 2002, and Omalu came armed with the autopsy photos.
But during the conference, the most disturbing thing was this: The NFL Players Association, the organization charged with protecting the players' interests, sent no representative. The NFL did little better.
The Sports Concussion Institute, which is based in Marina Del Rey and sponsored the event, sent an invitation to the owners and head trainers of each of the NFL's 32 teams. None attended.
But Mark Lovell, the team doctor for the Pittsburgh Steelers and a member of the league's research committee for concussions, did attend. He said he recently met with NFL commissioner Roger Goodell and predicted that Goodell will be "proactive'' when it comes to addressing the issue of concussions.
Those urging him to address the issue go beyond Steinberg and the medical community. Also in attendance at the summit was Warren Moon, the Hall of Fame quarterback who's working with the Sports Concussion Institute. Moon said he's hopeful and recalled a game a couple of years ago involving the Seattle Seahawks. Shaun Alexander, the team's starting running back, left the game after suffering a blow to the helmet. Later, Alexander ran up and down the sideline as if demonstrating he was prepared to return to the field.
But he never got back in the game, Moon said, apparently because the team's medical staff deemed it too risky.
"I think it's definitely getting better, but I think there's a lot more that needs to be done,'' he said.
As far as Steinberg is concerned, the NFL should do the following:
# Require teams to test the neurocognitive state of each player, which would allow physicians to see how levels changed after head-related injuries.
# Leave medical experts in charge of determining whether players should return to the field rather than allowing players who feel obligated to play through the pain to return.
# Require neurological experts to be on the field to evaluate players after head-related injuries.
# Educate players and other officials on the dangers of concussions, thereby forcing all stakeholders to take the issue more seriously.
Yet despite all the evidence pointing to concussions as a serious issue, skeptics might return to the story Steinberg told about Aikman. A week after suffering a concussion that temporarily robbed him of his memory and blurred his vision, Aikman completed 19 of 27 passes for 207 yards and the Cowboys beat the Buffalo Bills in Super Bowl XXVIII.
In 2001, Aikman retired after suffering the ninth concussion of his career. Today, neither he nor Steve Young - who suffered seven concussions in the NFL - show any outward signs of concussion-related damage. Both serve as TV commentators during the NFL season, and they come across as articulate and alert. Confronting Steinberg with this creates a delicate moment.
"Maybe they just started with more brain cells than the rest of us," he offered, smiling.
But as the smile receded, one could sense what Steinberg was thinking. Evidence suggests the effects of brain-related injuries can worsen over time. So for Aikman, Young and hundreds of other NFL players, the worst may be yet to come.
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