2015 NFL Hall of Fame Induction Report

Perhaps the anger and the rancor surrounding the NFL will dissipate – at least temporarily – at the Hall of Fame induction ceremonies on Saturday.

And maybe not.

We’ve heard too much about the inflation of footballs and the threat of franchise relocations. About court proceedings, hearings, investigations. Maybe the enshrinement of some of the NFL’s great players and general managers can assuage our bruised eardrums.

Junior Seau, Jerome Bettis, Charles Haley, Tim Brown, Will Shields, Mick Tingelhoff, Ron Wolf and Bill Polian get their due with the unveiling of their bust sculptures and the ceremonial gold jackets in Canton, Ohio. They are all worthy of the honors. Reality, however, will also have a place.

Seau, an outstanding linebacker from 1990-2009, will be particularly in focus. Three years ago, at the age of 43, he took his own life with a gunshot to the chest. A later examination of his brain by the National Institutes of Health reported that Seau suffered from chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE), chronic brain damage that has afflicted other deceased former NFL players. It is widely attributed to head injuries and concussions.

How to treat this issue through improved safety, and what to do about health care for players when their careers end, remains a minefield for the NFL and the players and their loved ones. Certainly Seau’s family can be expected to discuss this with reporters, to the NFL’s chagrin. There just aren’t any easy answers in a violent game based on physicality and collisions.

Let’s let these greats have their moment, without forgetting the price they paid for it and for our entertainment. And let’s enjoy the Pittsburgh Steelers and Minnesota Vikings opening the preseason on Sunday night at 8 p.m. ET (NBC).

This country loves football and its heroes. Those heroes freely take a risk. Let us hope there are ways to mitigate those risks, make the game safer and allow the players – great or average – to live fuller and healthier lives.
 
 
Post By: Larry Weisman, a longtime sportswriter for USA TODAY, blogs for Twistity.com. Follow him on Twitter @MrLarryWeisman .