The Golden Age of Football is Over?

[Elite Poster]

The golden age of football is when you were 11.

 

Stabler, Bradshaw, Tatum/Atkinson, Staubach,

 

All downhill after that.

That's a joke...

 

Those guys don't hold a Ritz cracker to the man playing for the Patriots.

Edited August 10, 2017 by Elite Poster

[yungmack]

i was just having a discussion yesterday about how the NFL talent is in a huge lull right now. once this generation of QBs go away (brady/brees/rodgers/rivers/ben/flacco/manning), who is left? who's picking up the torch?

 

Nobody says it's going away, just that it's peaked.

[Jay_Fixit]

The NFL took a turn for the worse when they stopped allowing DB's to cover.

Edited August 10, 2017 by Jay_Fixit

[BobbyC81]

i only have a daughter, but i don't think i'd have any problem with a son playing football. i played at the pop warner and high school level, and besides the usual more minor injuries, everyone was in good health. it think it's the continued play at the higher, much more competitive levels that lead to the serious problems.

 

Well, let's see. Since you spelled 'feet' backwards you may be dyslexic, your avatar is a muppet and you're still an avid Bills fan after 17 straight years with no playoffs, you may have actually taken too many hits to the head.

[BillsFan17]

If my son asks to play football, I won't say no.

[stuvian]

Football probably peaked ten years ago and has no where to go but down. Still I often wonder what would replace it in my life. Like rock and roll it too is fading away

 

Mike Ditka wouldn't let his son play.

 

It will become what boxing is today, the last refuge of the poor and desperate.

[aristocrat]

They need to fix the helmets and find a cure for the brain disease.

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[ddaryl]

Kids are growing up today playing Soccer.

 

I called this reality a decade ago. The facts are football is dangerous and violent. Parents don't want their kids to play

 

The other fact is Football is inaccessible for most families. Way to expensive and parents can take kids to pro soccer game for 70% less money. With a lot less drunks

 

Add in the fact that girls and boys can play soccer together is appealing to many.

 

 

Over the next decade the talent pool for the NFL is going to sink mightily.. which will start to hit the bottom line. Expect ridiculous rule changes to try and save it in the faced of this reality fast approaching

Like rock and roll it too is fading away

 

 

No its not. There are 1000's of bands rocking hard.. They're just not catering to the demands of the major recording companies. I never have a shortage of amazing music at my disposal and can find much more. Got to dive into the underground for the sound these days. But there is no shortage of amazing music out there.

 

Of course rock and roll as we knew it in the 60's and 70's is not the same because to day rock encompasses so many styles. Folk, Rock, Heavy metal, Speed Metal, Grunge, Punk, Jamband etc.... Its because rock and roll has splintered into so many sub groups the recording companies can't force it into the pop sound that country has become.

 

IMO most pop music is simply lowest common denominator music. It appeals to broad audience and makes money... Most rock bands today are forging their own styles and directions and mixing and mashing genres.. The mass commercial appeal of rock is gone because many do not like their music to experiment. They want a clean standard sound, and the recording companies only pimp that.

Edited August 10, 2017 by ddaryl

[boater]

Seriously, the Golden Age of Franchise Quarterbacks is coming to an end.

 

There are not enough franchise QBs today (previous thread here seemed to agree that only about 15 FQB's exist). Imagine the shortage a couple years from now when this group highschoolers in draft status.

 

Maybe the Jets are right to tank.

[DriveFor1Outta5]

Kids are growing up today playing Soccer.

 

I called this reality a decade ago. The facts are football is dangerous and violent. Parents don't want their kids to play

 

The other fact is Football is inaccessible for most families. Way to expensive and parents can take kids to pro soccer game for 70% less money. With a lot less drunks

 

Add in the fact that girls and boys can play soccer together is appealing to many.

 

 

Over the next decade the talent pool for the NFL is going to sink mightily.. which will start to hit the bottom line. Expect ridiculous rule changes to try and save it in the faced of this reality fast approaching

There will always be pro football players. If anything the greed and stupidity of the NFL will be what destroys the game. Soccer is a "safe" option for overprotective suburban parents to force their children to play. Soccer isn't producing elite athletes. I don't believe that soccer is going to take players away from the NFL. We're a nation of over 300 million who aren't very competitive on the world soccer stage.

 

As far as football is concerned, I don't enjoy watching the game the way I once did. Rule changes and overzealous officiating often make the game unwatchable. If anything destroys the NFL it will be itself.

[Pine Barrens Mafia]

There will always be pro football players. If anything the greed and stupidity of the NFL will be what destroys the game. Soccer is a "safe" option for overprotective suburban parents to force their children to play. Soccer isn't producing elite athletes. I don't believe that soccer is going to take players away from the NFL. We're a nation of over 300 million who aren't very competitive on the world soccer stage.

 

As far as football is concerned, I don't enjoy watching the game the way I once did. Rule changes and overzealous officiating often make the game unwatchable. If anything destroys the NFL it will be itself.

 

Soccer's just part of the feminizaton of america.

 

Concerned mommies unite.

[T-Bomb]

Only thing that will kill football is if ppl stop watching it. The TV money is what is keeping the league going. Eventually, the NFL will go the way of NASCAR, they will lose a lot of veiwers, the TV money will shrink, it will fade away.

 

I don't think there is a timetable for this collapse, but it will eventually occur.

[DriveFor1Outta5]

 

Soccer's just part of the feminizaton of america.

 

Concerned mommies unite.

I just have a difficult time understanding the arguments against allowing your kid to play high school football. Do they place these kids in bubble wrap? I remember when I was a teenager. I broke my leg twice, and probably hit my head countless times doing dumb things other than football. Teenage boys do dangerous and dumb stuff. Football just ranks somewhere on that list. Apparently kids these days don't go outdoors with friends. I suppose that they just play soccer, and use their tablets.

[Bray Wyatt]

People keep referencing soccer as an alternative, but didn't a study come out saying there are more concussions etc in soccer? Im pretty sure that is what they found, due to all the heading of the ball

[T-Bomb]

I just have a difficult time understanding the arguments against allowing your kid to play high school football. Do they place these kids in bubble wrap? I remember when I was a teenager. I broke my leg twice, and probably hit my head countless times doing dumb things other than football. Teenage boys do dangerous and dumb stuff. Football just ranks somewhere on that list. Apparently kids these days don't go outdoors with friends. I suppose that they just play soccer, and use their tablets.

 

I think families these days worry about medical insurance etc. Also, your kid is very likely never to become a pro football player, so what is the point of High School football? All it does is ruin your body. Playing football for a few years in high school is not worth the decades of pain you could suffer later in life. It's simply not worth it unless you're going to make millions of dollars playing it, and even then, it still probably isn't worth it...

[MAJBobby]

Going to stop them from joing the military too, Major?

 

How about driving?

Military is a differenr story. I will not sign the parent waiver to go early however once they turn 18 they are an adult and free to make their own decisions. So yes i will inform them of both the good and bad (like they wont already know this with me in) and let them make thier own decision.

 

Driving again once they turn of age i will use driving as an incentive.

 

But No when their minds are developing and they are not old enough to make an informed decision i will not allow them to play football. Now in highschool i probably will, because they can make their informed choice but like others said ONE concussion and no more playing

[May Day 10]

It is an interesting topic. There is/will be much less participation. I'm not letting my son play tackle football.

 

I do think the NFL's rapid growth phase is saturated and over. They have 32 great brands people have immersed themselves in, and perfected the fan-participation by way of fantasy football, pools, and daily fantasy... I dont think it is going anywhere for awhile, but I could see a gradual recession in revenues. I think the NBA is going to supplant the NFL in the next 10-15 years. There is a global market there like the NFL could never have.

 

 

 

I wonder if the owners will someday ease player conduct restrictions and drug testing and kind of open the door moreso for guys who truly do not have many other options in life than to put their brains on the line.

[oldmanfan]

I think the NFL will slowly fade with time, but it will take several decades. It will be driven by having fewer kids play the game because of parental concerns about injury, and because the kids don't play their interest as fans will wane as well. So as time goes on you'll have fewer and fewer people interested in the sport in general, although as stated above that timeline will be in decades. I do see trends in the right direction, such as delaying contact until a later age, and a re-emphasis on teaching proper tackling techniques etc. But my sense is that the slow erosion of the talent pool will continue.

 

I have two daughters (who by the way joesixpack would kick your butt if needed), so I haven't had to decide about wanting a child to play football. I would be supportive, in much the same way I'd be supportive of them choosing soccer, lacrosse, etc. I'd be looking for age appropriate coaching and training, limited contact until age appropriate, and the like. Both my daughters are performers; the older one was a big show choir kid and now is a professional actress/performer, and the younger one is a show choir kid and performer. And these show choir kids work as physically hard as any sport I've seen. So I've escaped the difficult decisions as to contact sports.

 

Is the Golden Age of football done? To me that was the 60's, when you had great players on both sides of the ball, when defenses could actually play defense, and such. I'm not saying that I disagree with the current state of the art, with more focus on injury prevention, taking out the more vicious type hits on receivers, and such. Very supportive of trying to make the equipment safer (hopefully helmets improve, but the issue is not the outside of the helmet, but how do you cushion or otherwise keep the compression of the head and brain from occurring inside the helmet when there is a big hit??). Completely understand any initiatives that promote a safer game.. But it has altered how the game is played, placed much more emphasis on the offense vs. defense, and to an older fan like me that appreciated the game more back in the day the Golden Age has passed. And maybe appropriately so. But other than my fandom for the Bills I don't find myself watching football anymore just to watch it, as my interest in the game in general is not what it used to be.

[Pine Barrens Mafia]

(who by the way joesixpack would kick your butt if needed),

 

 

 

 

Ok tough guy. I have a daughter. I'm not trying to force her to be a man.

 

Just like if I had a son, I wouldn't force him into a sport like soccer out of fear.

Edited August 10, 2017 by joesixpack

[DriveFor1Outta5]

 

I think families these days worry about medical insurance etc. Also, your kid is very likely never to become a pro football player, so what is the point of High School football? All it does is ruin your body. Playing football for a few years in high school is not worth the decades of pain you could suffer later in life. It's simply not worth it unless you're going to make millions of dollars playing it, and even then, it still probably isn't worth it...

As a kid I got injured doing everything except playing football. I grew up in a small town competing against 150 pound kids. I'll admit that it wasn't the highest level of football. People tend to forget that these levels exist. The majority of small town high school football isn't some brutal blood bath played by 250 pound athletes. Every middle aged men seems to love talking about their high school football injuries. It's almost as if it's a badge of honor.

 

People forget that teenage boys are injury prone. It's not just football players who suffered childhood injuries that last a lifetime. The leg I broke in the same place twice hurts from time to time. It had nothing to do with football. It had to do with me being a kid who actually played outside. Everyone I know suffered broken bones and concussions as child. This is what happens when you don't place kids in bubble wrap. I'm not saying that football doesn't increase those odds, but to say that football has no benefits is confusing imo. If you really believe that playing football isn't worth it even for millions of dollars, isn't watching the game morally wrong for you?