NFL’s future is safe as long as more people think like a Boston area brain specialist.
It is unclear whether USA Football pushed an opinion to Yahoo! Sports or if Yahoo! Sports approved an opinion piece but Yahoo! Sports found a brain scientist who lets his 11 year old son play football. Dr. Peter Cummings has no problems allowing his son to play because the neuropathologist who practices in the Boston area pretty much disagrees with all of the research that suggests constant head contact in football causes CTE in some people. Dr. Cummings, who coaches his son, is a court certified medical expert. He has not been involved in any of the research of CTE but knows it is flawed and USA Football is happy to have him on board in an effort to prove that football is safe for children. USA Football is trying to get parents to allow their children to play tackle football at a very young age.
Dr. Cummings, who admits he has no access to the research, claimed some unnamed members of the medical and research community disagree with the findings that football causes CTE, the fluid found on the brain that can cause brain changes. Dr. Cummings just isn’t buying the football-brain damage link. Dr. Cummings also decided to check the media reporting. He dislikes the narrative the media is pushing that football is not doing anything to protect players. Dr. Cummings did distanced himself from the NFL and people paying for CTE studies. Yahoo! Sports published Dr. Cummings piece as an Op Ed. It is solely the opinion of Dr. Cummings. The Op Ed came out after a Boston University study that suggested children playing football under 12 have more brain issues later in life than those who started playing football after the age of 12. USA Football has found a friend in Dr. Cummings, who thinks CTE won’t be a problem for his football playing son.
