Health & Fitness
NFL Legend: Tackle Football Should Start in High School
Recently, an NFL legend said that tackle football shouldn't start until high school. So, what is a football fan to do if their child wants to play? Flag football, of course!
Like many men my age (29) Sunday mornings are spent catching up on work, enjoying the quiet, playing with the dogs, and watching ESPN all while the wife sleeps. As the NFL pre season comes to an end, ESPN is covering a story on its “Outside the Lines” broadcast titled “Football at a Crossroads.”
A former NFL great who never blossomed like he’d originally hoped, when asked “how many concussions did you sustain?” His chilling answer was “too many.”
The dangers of playing competitive football in the NFL, NCAA and high school sometimes start well before the glitz and glamour of running through the tunnel on Sunday afternoon in front of millions. A lot of time, unsuspecting head injuries in children at six, seven or eight years old could lay the groundwork for long-term injuries.
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While the NFL is doing a fantastic job of policing the sport to make it safer for its players, the fact remains that while they’re trying to prevent and deter “the big hit”, the repetitive nature of being tackled and hit thousands of times growing up add up well before they play at a higher level.
Even Herm Edwards, former NFL coach and ESPN broadcaster, said he’d start the kids playing tackle football in high school. An ESPN poll asked parents, coaches and fans at what age contact should be allowed, and the answer was 12 years old. Many tackle football programs start shortly after kindergarten.
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So what’s a concerned parent to do?
As I said, I’m only 29, so the options were very limited when I was growing up for families who love football but can’t quite get around to playing tackle football. Growing up, lacrosse wasn’t quite mainstream, and there were no youth flag football leagues.
i9 Sports is a national youth sports league that offers many sports, including flag football. In fact, kids get to play as young as three years old! Concerned parents always ask about how much contact is there in a typical flag football league, and Program Director Matt Elder says that typically there’s less contact in a youth flag football program than a youth soccer program.
Parents who are concerned about safety in youth football have
more options than ever. Many parents who can’t commit the time to tackle
football, or are concerned about concussions, join the league everyday. For
more information about our programs, visit www.i9sports.com.
i9 Sports offers youth sports programs for kids age 3-14 in the Framingham, Marlborough and Shrewsbury area. Visit www.i9sports.com today for details on all of our programs. Mention this article and receive $15 off any fall program!
