Last week, three players retired from the NFL that were all 30 years old or younger. We discussed younger players walking away from the sports at or near their prime and tonight news broke of another player who will be stepping away from the game.
San Francisco 49ers linebacker Chris Borland told ESPN’s Outside The Lines on Monday that he is retiring from the NFL due to concerns about the long-term health effects of head trauma. The 49erslater announced the retirement in a statement.
With Patrick Willis announcing his retirement last week, Borland was to step into a bigger role in 2015 after starting eight games in 2014. But instead, Borland makes a very surprising decision to step away from the game and had this to say about his choice…..
“I just honestly want to do what’s best for my health, said Borland, who met with prominent concussion researchers before making his decision. “From what I’ve researched and what I’ve experienced, I don’t think it’s worth the risk.â
Borland, 24, has been diagnosed with two concussions in his life — once while playing soccer in eighth grade and again while playing football during sophomore year of high school. He said he believed he may have suffered a third concussion during training camp, but played through it because of his concern about making the team as a third-round pick out of Wisconsin.
“I just thought to myself, ‘What am I doing? Is this how I’m going to live my adult life, banging my head, especially with what I’ve learned and knew about the dangers?ââ
“I’ve thought about what I could accomplish in football, but for me personally, when you read about Mike Webster and Dave Duerson and Ray Easterling, you read all these stories and to be the type of player I want to be in football, I think I’d have to take on some risks that as a person I don’t want to take on,” he said.
Borland’s decision to retire is a shocking one but obviously he has done his research and it does not seem to be a rash decision. The question now is if Borland will become a trend-setter and others will follow in his footsteps as more information about concussions and the long-term effects of football related injuries become more readily available.
[NFL.com]
