Types of Injuries NFL Players Go Through
Joe Johnson
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Bill from Lines.com stops by to give us a national view on the NFL.
You can view his recent take of the NFC via our sister-site, VikingsTerritory.com, HERE.
The National Football League (NFL) is the pinnacle of American Football. It’s where we get to see the top talents not just in the United States, but also in the world, perform on the gridiron. There’s no level of competition in the world of American football higher than the NFL.
Pro athletes are among the highest-paid professionals in the world for a reason. Not only do they provide top-tier entertainment with their regular showcases of superhuman athleticism, but they also put their bodies on the line to provide us with countless highlights.
In fact, it’s not uncommon for injuries to happen throughout a strenuous season. Every team from time to time has players on the injury report due to the intensity of football, and there are injuries which are already commonplace for pro football players and are basically part and parcel of playing the sport at such a high level. On the other hand, there are also those rare yet unfortunate injuries that are grave enough to actually end a player’s career.
What Causes Injuries in Football?
Outside of fighting sports and rugby, gridiron football is perhaps the sport with the highest level of physicality. The way the game is played, it’s inevitable for players to take blows that normal people probably couldn’t handle, and NFL athletes do this multiple times each game.
While it is true that football players have protective gear, sometimes it’s not enough and the physical nature of the game will just make it inevitable for players to sustain injuries. Players handle tackles from world-class athletes who are among the strongest people in the world, and a single mistimed or misjudged movement can put too much tension on the body and thus cause injury. It’s not always intentional, but it’s also not avoidable at times.
Common NFL Injuries
Because of the nature of the sport, there are certain parts of the body of NFL players that are more susceptible to injury. According to Leon Mead, M.D., the most usual injuries that NFL players suffer are those to the knee, foot and ankle, shoulder, and concussions.
Knee Injuries
Football is a sport where mobility is crucial, and our mobility is highly dependent on our knees. The best football players are among the fastest sprinters in the world and are masters at changing pace and direction, and the power they generate from their legs alone might even be greater than all the power a normal person could exert using his entire body.
Because of this, any sudden unexpected movement or pressure applied when running can greatly damage a football player’s knees. NFL players are at risk of tearing or straining their anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) and posterior cruciate ligament (PCL) when they land too roughly after a catch or when they change directions too quickly when running.
Foot and Ankle Injuries
Another area that is prone to injury because of the seemingly endless running in football is the foot and ankle area. While footwear and cleats have developed throughout the years, they also seemingly offer less protection since they are lighter and relatively less stable now.
From a botched landing to an unforeseen collision, there are a variety of ways as to how NFL players can injure their feet and ankles. These injuries may be something as minor as a sprain or a rolled ankle, or to something more debilitating such as bone spurs.
Shoulder Injuries
Football players, specifically quarterbacks, are commonly at risk of suffering shoulder injuries. Quarterbacks exert immense effort using their shoulders when throwing pinpoint passes to their teammates across the field, and the repetitive action can take its toll when fatigue sets in. This can lead to rotator cuff tendonitis or biceps tendonitis.
There are also shoulder injuries that other players may experience which can be caused through intense contact when handling tackles, such as sprains and dislocations.
Concussions
NFL players wear helmets for a reason. The sheer determination of a defender to catch up to whoever has the ball provides little time to consider that player’s body, much less his head. However, despite this protection, it’s still possible for players to suffer concussions due to powerful helmet to helmet collisions. The clashing of helmets cannot just leave a player’s ears ringing, but also cause concussions.
Career-ending Injuries
The injuries mentioned above are common enough that they are usually recovered from through time and players who suffer them are able to return to form and compete again once they have been cleared by medical authorities.
But there are also those injuries that are too much for even the best athletes in the world to handle. These injuries might be treated, but players who suffer these injuries aren’t able to perform at the same level, or aren’t actually able to return to a condition where they can play a football game. Some of these injuries may even cause lifelong disabilities.
Spine Injuries
Freak accidents happen sometimes in football. What may seem to be a routine play can quickly go wrong without warning and there are collisions which plow players into the ground. It’s tough to take another player’s well-being into consideration when you’re a defender who’s solely focused on stopping that player.
This can lead to career-ending spine injuries such as those sufferedby Kevin Everett and Johnny Knox. Spine injuries may also cause permanent difficulties in walking and in general movement, with paralysis being the worst case.
Severe Leg and Knee Injuries
An ACL tear is perhaps one of the most dreaded phrases in football, and in sports in general. Players who suffer torn ACLs rarely come back to form, and nascent careers of football stars are cut short even if they return to the field, since they normally can’t play at the same caliber again.
There are also injuries such as fractures of the tibia and fibula which basically breaks the entire leg, such as the injury suffered by Joe Theismann in 1985, which leave gruesome images behind and could even deter other players who see such injuries from ever touching a football again.
Bottom Line
Football is a dangerous sport. Every game, players are exposed to the possibility of suffering an injury, and players are able to bounce back from these setbacks in pursuit of success and to provide us with high quality entertainment. That injuries are commonplace yet the NFL still boasts of players who are committed to the sport is a testament of the caliber of talent and the hard work that professional athletes have and put in every single day.