Read Green Bay Packer Jermichael Finley's first-hand account of his recent injury (click on "a collison" in the article to view a video of the injury). Next, comment in some way on what you read. The subject of your commentary is endless, but these are some possible suggestions: Relate what he went through to something in your own life. React to one of the comments from fans that follow the article. Argue for or against the new tackling rules in the NFL that are supposed to keep players from getting hurt.
Article: "Jermichael Finley: Fear. Relief. Resolve."
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ReplyDeleteThis is where the money part of football should come in play. This is why the NFL players are paid so much for this type of accidents on the field. This could have changed his life completely around and there could have been no no way for him to get another job to support his family. This should change slot of football players mind sets on the life after football. Some NFL players just like the senior football players in Friday Night Lights; they think they're invisible but reality can check in fast.
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ReplyDeleteA lot of the fans are right, it isn't helmet-to-helmet at all and if the helmets did hit, it was a majority of Finley's fault (as he said, he lowered his head/shoulders to protect his knees). I think it was finely fault since he did curl up to avoid the tackle. Lowering his body like that almost caused him to be paralyzed. It wasn't Gibson fault since he did try to avoid him by turning his body away from Finley at the last second. I say Gipson shouldn't be suspended or fined at all . Finley is lucky that he will be able to play football again and not being paralyzed forever.
ReplyDeleteI agree with you on this. I think that was a bad call. It was Finleys fault and Gibson shouldn't be suspended or fined for this. God Blessed Finley because he is healing and isn't Paralyzed any more, he should be thankful for that.
DeleteYour right Damien, if finely's worried about his knees he should be wearing knee pads to protect him from knee injuries.
DeleteDamien is wrong. You can't just go around saying it's his fault. That can happen in any play of the game of football.
DeleteI agree with you. Gibson is the one at fault in this situation.
DeleteEven though he went through a neck injury He still wanted to play again because he knew it was his fault and players don't really try to hurt people because of the violations and the fines that needed to be paid if you do something against the rules.i think that the new rules suck and shouldn't be in play because of making more injuries somewhere else it's better to keep it the way it was.
ReplyDeleteI agree with you, on the part of how the rules suck and limit players to actually actual football, I think some futbol players tho try to injure someone from the opposite team because they might feel jelous of how famous that player is, they want to become well recognized and famous.
DeleteI agree with what Finley said by trying to laugh to forget about the injury. I think that's all people can do. You can't change the past of what happened, you need to focus on the positives. That's exactly what Finley was trying to do. It's crazy to think that one split second can change your life forever. People don't tend to think about that.
ReplyDeleteI agree with you Kyley. Injuries are unavoidable. Getting hurt is a part of the game and it will happen. You have to stay positive and recover. When i tore my ACL i was devastated. I stayed positive and now I'm recovering. I'm thrilled to get healthy and get back to playing sports, especially basketball.
DeleteKyley is right, you just have to start focusing on your self and future.
DeleteI agree with you that people need to stop focusing on the past. It's over and done with.
DeleteI agree Kyley, the past is the past and you can't do anything about it. Best thing to do is smile and move on. Focus on your'e future and leave all the negative vibes behind you.
DeleteI agree, Finley came back and put his fears behind him. Instead of looking at life from a depressing point of where he was almost paralyzed. Finley, loves football more then anything which is what keeps him going to overcome his injury
DeleteI like the way Finley is approaching everything after going through a serious injury like that. He said that he is laughing, joking around and thinking positive. All he is thinking about now is when he will be able to play football again. I think it shows how much guts and love of the game he has because all he wants to do is return to the field, even after going through that terrifying experience.
ReplyDeleteI agree if I have gotten into an injury like that I would have second thoughts of playing again.
DeleteI agree with you Jorge; these types of injuries don't happen very often to someone and as terrifying as it, he had no second thoughts if he was going to play or not. He was set on returning to the feild as soon as possible.
DeleteI agree on this. Finely is putting the past behind him and moving on. That is a big step in getting back to the player he was. He's concentrating on getting back on the field and only contributing to his team.
DeleteI feel that the NFL is doing the right thing by setting all these rules, especially helmet to helmet rule. The reason being is because there getting fined by all these players in the NFL. They need to protect themselves. In one way I agree because safety comes first. Therefore it changes the game a lot different than it really was. Players have to watch on how they tackle their opponent, so that they won't get fined. It take away the purpose of the game.
ReplyDeleteI agree in some of your statement. Yes I think safety come first, but if they make all these rules then football is going to become boring and a lot of people will stop watching it.
DeleteI agree, safety is first but it's getting to the point where it's not even fun watching anymore. All these rules are putting an end to the purpose of football. Hard hits, big tackles, and rocking an opponent is what keeps the excitement in the game.
DeleteI think the NFL can only do so much to protect the players. If Gibson ends up getting fined, I think the NFL just wants money. The defender isn't at fault when the receiver or back lowers there head. I feel like football is becoming soft now. If you don't want to get a concussion, then don't play. You know what your getting into when you play that.
ReplyDeleteI agree football is becoming soft, before we know it it's gonna be two hand touch.
DeleteI agree that it wasn't the defenders fault, so he shouldn't get fined. Finley even admits that its his own fault for lowering the shoulder.
DeleteI agree, football is becoming two hand touch. It's just getting boring. All these officials are taking away the fun of the game.
DeleteI agree, professional football players need to toughen up and play the game they love.
DeleteIn the article Finely talks about how he lowers his head and back to avoid the tackle, but later on in the article it talks about Gibson getting fined because he hit helmets with Finley. I think this is unfair to Gibson because its not his fault that this happened, it's Finleys fault because he curled up and lowered his body to avoid the tackle. This is a stupid call and I think it should be reconsidered. I feel that the tackling rules are good but I feel that the coaches should practice them a little better so the players don't get hurt.
ReplyDeleteI agree with you, finely used his head as protection for his knees.
DeleteI agree also, but they should put more money into new euipment and even new knew padding.
DeleteI agree with you, it was Finley fault since he curled up to avoid the tackle. He was trying to protect himself from the tackle.
DeleteI feel that the NFL has to keeping making new rules, just to be able to stay away from lawsuits. The players have to realize that football is a sport were you can loose everything just in one play. If the players, keeping filling out lawsuits against the NFL, they are not going to have a job anymore.
ReplyDeleteI agree with you Dawid. I think the players have to be aware of what they are getting themselves into. They need to realize that they can get hurt and their lives can change in matter of seconds.
DeleteI think that is true because they sighned up for this and knew the consequences of playing football for anyone in the nfl.
DeleteI agree with you because these NFL players dont understand what they're getting themselves into when they sign those contracts. They need to realize that this is not an easy game, they could mae one little move in one play that could cause some major injury.
DeleteIf your going to play in the NFL you have to know the what might happen to you. The players know the risk and they shouldn't file law suits years later. Finley did get lucky he can walk again. He knew the risks of football but you have to experience first to relize how scarey a hit is.
ReplyDeleteI agree because if you are a football player that is getting paid millions of dollars you shouldn't file law suits against the NFL. They know that injury comes with a price and their salary is their price.
DeleteI agree with you because, the players should know the risk. Even former NFL players knew what would happen, and if they didn't, how dumb do you have to be to know that when you use your head, your bound to hurt yourself.
DeleteProfessional athletes should be aware of what they are getting into. Football is one of the most physical sports in the world. The NFL is trying to minimize injuries but it's very difficult because football is a very physical sport. If you play sports competitively you WILL get injured sooner or later. It could be just a sprained ankle or an ACL tear; you're going to get injured and it's up to you if you wanna continue to play. God is brought up in the comment below the article. I think god wants the best for us. I believe the things that happen to us are lessons god wants to teach us. Everything happens for a reason because god is trying to teach us a lesson. Professional athletes get paid a lot of money to do what they do and should be aware of the risks. Is it worth it? I think so. The amount of money athletes receive for doing something they enjoy is unbelievable.
ReplyDeleteI agree with Syzmon, I just think the NFL needs to put more money knto new equipment.
DeleteI agree with Szymon because athletes know the possible injuries. Yet, why do people play sports? It's something people enjoy and are rewarded in the end by sacrificing their life just to play.
DeleteSomething I got from this article is how quickly things can change for athletes. One minute you're playing on one of the best teams in the NFL, and next thing you know you're on a stretcher questioning if you'll ever walk again. It shows that these players are risking everything they have health wise on a weekly basis. The NFL should try to imply new and more safe padding and rules for these players without compromising the basis of the game. Sadly that isn't easy, this year the NFL implied many rules to try and protect offensive players heads and upper body, consequently, we are seeing a myriad of players go down with blown out knees. The NFL is put in a tough spot, but they must try and stop injuries like this from happening.
ReplyDeleteI agree with you Daniel. The NFL is in a tough spot. It's very difficult to change the rules without changing the sport to protect the players. Injuries are unavoidable and they will happen so there isn't much anyone can do.
DeleteI agree because injuries are unavoidable in every sport, especially football.
DeleteI think that the rules for tackling in the NFL have blew out of porportion. I think all of these players risk thier lives playing football. Playing football is there choice because it's a physical sport and you have to pay the consequences from it. A lot of players don't realize it and think every hit is illegal. I think if you are trying to protect your knees, you shouldn't do it with your head because as I seen you can get paralyzed. If your worried about your knees you should wear braces.
ReplyDeleteSometimes pads and guard aren't enough, and I agree about the NFL rules being blown out of proportion.
DeleteI agree with the rules because players are tackling more on the legs now because of the new rules.
DeleteI agree with Jorge, because of the new rules ; players are aiming at the knees more.
DeleteI agree Belal, instead of using his head to protect his knees; he should start wearing knee braces. Football is a very physical sport and the NFL should change some rules for the player's safety.
DeleteI agree Belal, these new rules are ruining the game in general. Your right football is a physical game and it's a players choice to play or not. A players safety is important but this is just ridiculous.
DeleteAthletes play football to show there the best that ever played the game. In my opinion, if you know that playing this game can get you severly injured, and hurt. It was your decision to play the game. That's why your paid so much money, and looked upon as the best of the best. Changing the tackling rules just doesn't make the NFL actual "football" anymore. The only rule I can completely agree with is hits to the head, but this just makes it ten times harder for defensive players. Changing the tackling rules has even backfired, and got the NFL into even more problems. There are still concussions, and now more knees blown out then ever? The NFL should put more effort into new equipment and technolog. Not saying were you can hit, and how hard you can. If this keeps up. The next thing fans will be watching is flag football.
ReplyDeleteI agree here with Moe, the players know what they are getting themselves into. Football by nature is a hard hitting, full contact sport. If the NFL takes away these hard hits they will lose a lot of viewers.
DeleteI believe the new tackling rules are not as benoficial and they had hoped they would be. The new rules were made to help prevent concussions to the players. Well they are preventing concussions there had been so many more knee injuries that the players would probably rather get concussions. Football is a very dangerous sports because of all the aggressive contact but the players know that. They should be prepared for the worst. All in all, they are damned if they do and damned if they don't, no matter what people will still file lawsuites that's just how socity is today.
ReplyDeleteI agree with this because no matter what you're in a win-lose situation. You either protect your body and hurt your head, or you hurt your body and protect your head. I don't understand how they'll make a decision based on getting hurt either way.
DeleteI feel like the NFL is doing the right thing but fans can't accept it. Every fan i used to good old fashioned football. Which means hard hits and no penalties for them. You don't want to see one of your best players get hurt off some illegal tackle. I personally like the old way but the new way is a lot more safe for the players. Especially in the future. The NFL has new rules but they shouldn't add to many new ones or else i fear no one would watch.
ReplyDeleteJosh is right, very soon the NFL won't be the same game anymore. They are trying to protect the players, but that's just the nature of the game. You can't change the nature of something.
DeleteI agree with you Josh the NFL won't be the same anymore because of all these rules. I also think there going to far with the how to tackle a football player.
DeleteI agree Josh. New rules are ok, it's just the number of new rules is what makes fans and other people upset with the NFL.
DeleteI agree with Josh, the NFL won't be the same if they keep making all these rules up. I understand their protecting players but its taking so much from the game.
DeleteI think when you start playing football, you should know that injuries are unavoidable and that sooner or later you are going to get hurt. Football is one of the most physical sport and getting injured is not that hard even with all the padding they have. I think they should stop changing the rules to football and keep it the same way it has been when it started a long time ago.
ReplyDeleteYes I agree with the new tackle rule for a few reasons. One is because it's for the safety of the NFL players. Also, it's better for every one in the factor of wanting to watch their fav. Football players actually play.
ReplyDeleteI don't really agree because nfl won't be the same. Player will be afraid to tackle because of fines and everything else. NFL won't be the same if the rules are in play.
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ReplyDeleteI think this is a very good article, I think the NFL contradicts itself, they don't want it's players to hit near the face because it causes severe injuries like this one. The players have no other option than go to the legs and that's why there have been a massive amount of knew injuries. Now that the NFL realized that the rule haven't done any better, they want to prohibit players to tackle on the knees. I don't see a point of limiting futbol players to actual play a football game without having to worry about committing faults and getting charged with huge amounts of money.
ReplyDeleteI think they shouldn't sue the NFL nor the player that injured you because you already know what your getting yourself into when you join the NFL. You know that theirs going to be injuries in the NFL. You don't have the right to sue the person that injured you , because it ain't his fault he injured you badly, he is just following the NFL rules, and doing what he has to do.
ReplyDeleteThere's on,y so much the NFL can do to prevent injuries, the only thing they can do is warn upcoming players that it's a hard hitting sport and there's no guarantee they won't get injured. I also beleive that the NFL is gonna start becoming way softer sport because of injuries like this.
ReplyDeleteDan is right. Sooner or later your only going to be able to tackle a certain way. I think these players already know the consequences of playing such a physical sport. So they shouldn't file lawsuits after their career is over.
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