Injuries have been a serious issue this year in sports. Injuries show up at all levels of sports, whether that be on the professional level or on the amateur level. However, not all injuries are created equal. There are three types of injuries. Some injuries are minor, and people can play with that injury; some injuries are mild, and the player has to take time off to let the injury heal; then there are injuries that are season ending and possibly even career ending. That being said, all sports are also not created equal. There are contact sports like football, non-contact sports like baseball, and low-level contact sports like basketball. The type of injuries players get varies depending on the type of sport one plays, because the nature of each sport is different. As we all know, football is a very dangerous contact sport—some may even say suicidal—therefore, injuries that football players get are most likely to be serious. Baseball, on the other hand, is a less dangerous sport ,so baseball players tend to have minor to mild injuries. Basketball lies in the middle of football and baseball in terms of injuries.
Overall, injuries have a big impact in the sports world. Injuries have the ability to influence the story lines of each sport. Meaning, if an important athlete gets hurt, then their team will most likely suffer and lose a lot of games. Cough the Green Bay Packers. I argue that the NFL has a bigger problem with injuries than any other sport due to the game’s violent nature. Injuries have hit the NFL very hard so far this year. At the midway point of the season ,the NFL has lost a lot of their superstars. In fact, the All-Injured Reserve Team of 2017 would rival the Pro Bowl squad that will be elected later this season. Names such as Aaron Rogers, David Johnson, Odell Beckham Jr., Joe Thomas, Greg Olsen, J.J Watt, Cliff Avril, Eric Berry and others are not only injured, but affected with season ending injuries. Seeing the game’s best players being carted off the field with apparent season ending injuries is a little unsettling. For example, Odell Beckham Jr. was crying his eyes out while he was being carted off the field with a broken ankle. Unfortunately, injuries are so common in football that if a player doesn’t have a season ending injury or a concussion, they are most likely expected to play. NFL players feel the need to play with an injury because depending on their position on the field, they are easily replaceable and most of NFL contracts have little money guaranteed. This is a very toxic situation that most NFL players have to deal with. Odell Beckham Jr. might have broken his ankle because he was already hobbling around the field with a sprained ankle. The moral of the story here is that injuries suck.
