Written by John Blackstone at CBSnews.com
Five days ahead of Super Bowl 50, the NFL is studying how to deal with an alarming increase in concussions. The increase is from 115 concussions during the 2014 season to 182 in 2015. That’s a 58 percent increase, and it came after the league cracked down on dangerous helmet-to-helmet hits.
After former New York Giant Tyler Sash died at 27 years old, doctors were shocked to discover he had a degenerative brain disease unusually advanced in someone so young. His mother Barnetta blames football.
“They could have all the money back if I could just have my son back. Nothing else matters. And you can’t compensate anybody enough for that,” she said.
In the movie “Concussion,” Will Smith plays Dr. Bennet Omalu, the pathologist who first identified the brain disease, chronic traumatic encephalopathy, or CTE, in football players. He battled the football establishment to have it recognized.
“Nobody is denying CTE any longer,” Dr. Omalu said.
Dr. Omalu has studied the brains of dozens of deceased NFL players.
How many of the players on the field on Super Bowl Sunday will already be suffering from brain damage?
“I believe that 90 to 100 percent of professional players will suffer from CTE,” said Dr. Omalu.
But not everyone agrees.
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