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Chris Cornell
Professor Collins
ENGL 2301
3 March 2016
Footballs Fun and Pains
Created by The Point with Ana Kasparian in 2013, NFL Football Hits, Concussions, & a
Lifetime of Pain is a short talk show style video that explains how football impacts its players
on all playing levels as they grow older. This particular episode of the show evaluates recent
changes made to make football safer not only in the NFL, but also in college, high school, and
other levels. It is also discussed if these measures seem to be enough, as well as what else should
be done. The group then talks about what may eventually happen to football and its popularity.
They think that maybe football will become less popular as more research comes out about the
sports negative effects. Remote and precipitating causes in NFL Football Hits, Concussions, &
a Lifetime of Pain suggests that football can negatively affect a players daily life as well as the
way fans will enjoy watching the game in the future.
In the video, it is proposed on numerous occasions that football often causes its players to
feel more aches and pains, which is a remote cause. The video proposes that the physically
taxing things the players do cause them to have more chronic pain as they age. In the video, they
reference a Washington Post survey. This survey finds that nearly nine in ten report suffering
from aches and pains on a daily basis, and also that ninety-one percent of those surveyed
connect this pain with football (NFL Football). This horrific find helps support this cause,
especially when one considers that it is reinforced by the people it affects daily. Washington
Posts survey is not the only source that supports this argument. There are numerous sources that

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agree with this causal argument. Other studies, such as the one conducted by the University of
Michigan, suggest that football players, on average, often have arthritis and suffer more
discomfort due to pain than a normal person (UMich Page 23). In fact, little or no sources can be
found that disagree with football increasing the risk of feeling more aches and suffering chronic
pain, during and after a career in football. There are several other sources which give evidence
from surveys that prove football is a linked cause for these negative effects. Due to this, this
argument is extremely effective and can be considered.
NFL Football Hits, Concussions, & a Lifetime of Pain also uses the idea that football

can cause its players to age at a more rapid pace. Because this is only an underlining explanation,
this is a remote cause. A single claim in the video is made that football players have the body of
a seventy or sixty-five year old when they are in their late thirties (NFL Football). The problem
with proving what causes someone to age and how fast they age is that it is based mostly on
looks. Because everyone varies from each other genetically, the rate of one person aging will
vary from one individual to the next. Due to this, little research can be found on if football
actually increases the rate at which one ages. However, some observations made show that
endurance sports and exercises, such as football, do cause people to age faster. Ben Greenfield, a
triathlon trainer who specializes in physical health and strength building, has written an article
which compares two triathlon athletes. Both are in their fifties. But while one takes care of her
body by getting sleep and living a healthy lifestyle in addition to training, the other focuses
mostly on training instead of taking care of their body like they are supposed to. The one who
focuses more on training rather than healthy habits reports muscle aching, a reliance on medicine
to make it through a normal day, and having digestive problems, whereas the other does not
(Greenfield Par. 1-2). However, because the article is not scholarly, it cannot be taken as

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considerate research on this subject. The articles main focus is also not focused on football, but
rather triathlon training. Otherwise, there is diminutive scientific evidence that supports this
claim. Due to this, there is not much of an argument that can be made and considered, making
this claim seem extremely ineffective. However, if one considers more aches and pains as a sign
of aging, the claim can be supported by the studies conducted on pain. This in turn can support
the idea that football does, indeed, cause more progressive aging.
NFL Football Hits, Concussions, & a Lifetime of Pain also uses a precipitating cause to
explain that people watch and play football to release their stress and tension. In the video,
multiple people make this claim. The video asserts that people watch football to release their
stress and tension due to the barbaric nature of the sport. As a matter of fact, the video links
peoples fascination with watching the sport to Roman times when people enter the coliseum to
watch a person get mauled by the lion. They explain it is the human nature in people to want to
see someone hurt, and then not have any responsibility (NFL Football). Even after further
research, little information can be found on why people watch football. However, one University
of Michigan article links Fantasy football leagues with reasons for why people watch football,
proposing that the fans desire to win that serve as the motivating factor in an instrumental
media use behavior of the audience (Fortunato Par. 9). However, this does not support stress
and tension as causes for people watching football. Other sources make the claim that watching
football actually causes more stress. UAB News finds that Critical matchups, tight games and
crushing defeats provide heightened sensory inputs that trigger sympathetic responses and the
release of adrenaline, which can reduce blood flow to the heart and other muscles and increase
heart rate and blood pressure. The article also explains that the human body cannot distinguish
the difference between good and bad stresses, meaning that the stress you get from watching a

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sport is different than the stress you will have because of work and that watching football may
actually be dangerous (Greer Par. 1). This makes sense considering that at a football game, or
even at home watching on a television, fans sometimes let themselves be emotional while
watching the game. Due to this, the videos argument for watching football as a safe way to
relieve stress and tension cannot be taken into account, and is likely not even true.
NFL Football Hits, Concussions, & a Lifetime of Pain explains in brief detail about
how football impacts its players on all levels as they grow older. The show evaluates changes
that have been made in the past few years to make football safer on all levels. The video also
questions if these measures are going to be enough, as well as what else could be done. The
commentators also talk about what may eventually happen to football. It is questioned whether
or not its popularity will see a decline as more research is coming out about its negative effects.
Even though things are being done to make the popular sport safer in present time, it is still hard
to tell what the future popularity and safety will hold for its audience and its players. In
summary, the arguments made in the video definitely support that football may have negative
impacts on its players.

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Works Cited
"NFL Hits, Concussions, & a Lifetime of Pain." YouTube. YouTube, 24 May 2013. Web. 30 Mar.
2016.
Football has many side effects that come with playing it. Although some measures have
been taken to make it safer, it may not be enough. Because of this, as more research
comes out, footballs popularity may diminish over time.
Maxcy, Joel. "Economics of the NFL Player Entry Draft System." The Economics of the
National Football League (2011): 173-86. Ns.umich.edu. Web. 20 Mar. 2016.
Football players have many side effects from playing the sport. These effects include
physical injuries and pain. They also include mental side effects such as depression.
Greenfield, Ben. "Do Endurance Sports Make You Age Faster?" Www.active.com. N.p., n.d.
Web. 20 Mar. 2016.
Breen Greenfield makes a comparison between two athletes: one that takes care of
themselves while the other does not. The one that takes good care of their health is living
a normal lifestyle. The athlete that focuses mostly on training has shown more signs of
aging.
Fortunato, John A. "The Relationship of Fantasy Football Participation with NFL Television
Ratings." The Relationship of Fantasy Football Participation with NFL Television
Ratings. N.p., Sept. 2011. Web. 30 Mar. 2016.
Many people, mainly in the United States participate yearly in Fantasy Football leagues.
These leagues often cause the participant to have more anxiety and stress. This can be
dangerous to the participants health.

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Greer, Tyler. "UAB News - Is Football Stress Hazardous to Fans' Health?" Www.UAB.edu. N.p.,
5 Sept. 2014. Web. 30 Mar. 2016.
Football can cause stress for those who watch it. Unfortunately for the fans, their bodies
cannot tell the difference between good and bad stress. This can be a hazard to ones
health.