When yours truly is out having an adult beverage or two or three, it's not unusual for a stranger to come over and strike up a conversation. No big deal, kind of goes with the territory, and normally said conversation is about the Packers.
Some new ground, however, was broken yesterday when a guy came up and started talking about player safety. It is an important topic and it has gotten a lot of play in the media, so here's a couple thoughts on it.
The NFL is absolutely doing the right thing when it comes to investing time, energy and money in addressing the concussion issue. Before we give the league office an unqualified round of applause, it should be noted that it also behooves the NFL to do so. There are about 8 million lawsuits out there, and the league has to overcome years of a "where you at, what day of the week is it, and you're good to go" mentality. It wouldn't look good in court.
Personal opinion, but the NFL has to be careful in its zeal to make up for past sins not to change a game that's pretty darn good and extremely popular as is. Big hits and violent plays are part of the fabric of pro football, and if you legislate them out of the game, it's just not the same game.
I'm not talking cheap shots, but when it comes to good, clean hits, let 'em play.
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