February 23, 2011

It is time to hold the National Football League criminally responsible for the deaths that are occurring to its retired players.

Dave Duerson, age 50, committed suicide.

Rob Lytle, age 56, dies of a heart attack.  Previously had a stroke and shoulder and knee replacements.

Mike Webster, age 50, and committed suicide.  Dementia, intolerable pain.

Kenny McKinley, age 23, committed suicide.

Dan Johnson, age 50.  Takes 1,000 painkillers per month.

John Mackey, age 69, the greatest Tight End in history, has dementia.

Mark Schlereth, age 45, and claims to have had 20 plus operations.

This list goes on forever.

I guarantee you some player(s) who participated in the 2010 NFL season will commit suicide within 5 years because of concussions or constant pain.

Existing studies show the average life expectancy for NFL players is between 20 and 25 years shorter than that of the general population of the United States.

Even if these numbers were for coal mine workers, they would be deplorable.

Saint Roger Goodell and the thirty-two NFL team owners want you to believe they are concerned about player safety.  I do not believe a single word Roger Goodell says, or any words that come out of the NFL offices.

They want you to believe they have done studies on concussions, player health, retired players, etc.  Until I see the names and numbers of those studied, I do not believe anything from the league office.

The only player I ever heard say he walked away from the game unmarked was David Deacon Jones, the greatest Defensive End of all time.

Jim Brown, the greatest football player ever, probably did, but I never heard him say so.

There may be others, but they are rare.

I do not know the definitive answer to providing for a quality life after football, but I do know that expanding the 16-game regular season to 18 games is not the answer.

Perhaps it is time to ban facemasks so players are not inclined to lead with their faces but rather their shoulders.  I never understood how leading with the face and wrapping up a ball handler with the arms can be considered a safe technique.  If you get your head snapped back one time and receive a “stinger”, you know it is not a pleasant experience.  The only difference between a “stinger’ and being paralyzed is the amount of space between the spinal cord and the spinal discs in the spinal canal itself.

I would like to compile the most comprehensive list of the medical condition of retired NFL players ever.

I want to find out how many artificial knees, shoulders, hips, and fused cervical/thoracic/lumbar discs etc. are out there.

Pictures are worth a thousand words.

I want to put names and faces to the condition of retired players so the public can better understand the brutality of the game, as it exists today.

If it truly is a game, one should not have to sacrifice one-third of one’s life to participate in it.

Please forward my contact information to as many retired NFL players, as you know.  I want to assemble, document, organize, and publish that data on www.GeorgeSarkisian.com so that the NFL league offices will no longer be able to ignore the comprehensive debilitating numbers.  If the thirty-two team owners are not willing to provide for a safe work environment, then that responsibility falls on the rest of us.

Sincerely,

George Sarkisian-owner

www.GeorgeSarkisian.com

www.GradeAndComment.com

Chief Statistical Analyst

Farmington Hills, Michigan 48334

sarkisiangeorge@yahoo.com