We understand that American football is an intensely violent sport. It’s a game of bodies smashing against one another, again and again. Injuries are common, careers are short. But we love to watch it because it’s like a game of battlefield played in real time. All the strategies and tactics can go deep enough to interest the nerdiest of nerds.
The tradeoff is that your favorite players have a high chance of getting injured from week to week. Things can go wrong very quickly. Take for example Tua Tagovailoa, the quarterback for the Miami Dolphins team. He suffered a concussion in the Thursday night game last week, the unfortunate third (clinically confirmed) in the past few years. The dreams of Dolphin fans hoping for a good season disappeared in a flash in only week two.
Of course, the health of Tua is most important here. The consensus around the league and fans of the league is that he should retire. Continuing to play puts a huge risk for Tua’s quality of life after he is done playing. What happens when he is in his 40s and can’t remember his kids names? Or god forbid, next time he doesn’t make it off the field…
Everybody knows the stakes here, including Tua, I am sure. He knows retiring is the better move for his and his family’s long term future. But, if it were that easy to stop doing something in trade for long term benefits (and for the good of the family), alcoholism would not be a thing. Obesity would not be a thing. Chain smoking would not be a thing. Cheating on your spouse would not be a thing.
It’s a tough call to make, if Tua is even capable of making the logical choice. You’re likely asking him to give up the thing that gives him meaning in life, his identity. It’s like some veterans who prefer the war theatre than peacetime home. When something is so ingrained into who you are as a person, it’s super difficult to let go.
My money is on Tua playing on.
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