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A new study from researchers at Boston University draws a link between youth football and diminished cognitive ability.
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A new study from the Boston Universtiy School of Medicine confirms a relationship between tackle football played by children younger than 12 and impaired brain development later in life.
The study was done on 42 former NFL players between the ages of 40 and 69 who were divided into two groups: Those who began playing tackle football before the age of 12, and those who began later. Participants underwent a large number of tests, ranging from psychiatric evaluations to neuroimaging. Players averaged seven to nine years in the NFL and 17-20 years of total play.
Results of the study determined that players subjected to repetitive head trauma before they turned 12 were more likely to experience cognitive impairment later in life. Researchers chose the age of 12 as their boundary due to previous studies on adolescent brain development.
Given standard neurological assessment tests, researchers found a "significant" difference between the results of the two groups. Those who began playing tackle football before the age of 12 produced mean scores that were not only noticeably lower than those of their counterparts, but that were below the standard deviation of the tests. That is to say, their scores were lower than that of the average test taker.
The researchers also asserted that though there was a divide between the cognitive function of the two groups, it doesn't prove that starting tackle football after turning 12 is any safer.
Participation in youth football dropped 9.5% between 2010 and 2012, likely due to greater awareness of the link between football (and repetitive head trauma, both concussive and non-concussive) and neurological damage.
Last year, the NFL attempted to settle a lawsuit filed on behalf of 5,000 former players for $675 million. But after further examination, a judge determined that the amount offer was not enough to cover the substantial medical needs of former players suffering from injuries sustained during, or as a result of, the game and rejected the deal.
Brandon Vandenburg and Cory Batey were convicted Tuesday of raping an unconscious woman in a dorm room in 2013.
Brandon Vandenburg at court.
Mark Humphrey / AP Photo
The men were each charged with five counts of rape, and two counts of sexual battery for a 2013 incident in which they raped an unconscious 21-year-old student.
Vandenburg took photos and videos of the incident, which were recovered and shown to jurors during the two-week trial.
The men were drunk the night of the rape, according to their attorneys. The victim was drunk as well, and wasn't aware that the rape had taken place until Vanderbilt's investigation had already began, the Associated Press reported.
The incident came to light when Vanderbilt officials reviewed a dormitory surveillance video following a report of vandalism. When they reviewed the footage, they saw an unconscious woman being dragged into a dorm room. That is when they called Nashville Police, who opened an investigation.
Detectives asked the woman to get a physical examination, but she initially refused, still not knowing what had happened.
Vandenburg and Batey face years in prison when they're sentenced in March. Two other former players are facing charges in the incident, although their trials have yet to be scheduled.
The notoriously recalcitrant Seattle Seahawk staid true to tight-lipped form on Tuesday. Money Lynch is fed up with the NFL treating him like an ATM.
This is not a drill: Bill Belichick wore a suit.
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Getty Images Jim Rogash
Elsa / Getty Images
Robert Kraft was a surprise opening act for the Patriots’ first press appearance for the Super Bowl.
Patriots owner Robert Kraft — who made a surprise appearance before coach Bill Belichick — doubled down on the team's assertion that the footballs were under-inflated as a result of the weather and other outside elements.
On Saturday, Belichick headed an entire news conference in which he attempted to build that exact case. But scientists and even Wilson, the company that manufactures NFL footballs, have disputed Belichick's explanations.
Kraft said he has seen nothing but integrity from Belichick and quarterback Tom Brady over the 15 years they've worked together. He also blamed "media leaks" for what he called a one-sided conversation about the controversy.
He then — somewhat aggressively — suggested that if the NFL's investigation absolves the Patriots of wrongdoing, the league should apologize to the team, Belichick, and Brady. It was a bold demand.
Yesterday, during a Super Bowl press appearance, Seahawks cornerback Richard Sherman said he would be surprised if the NFL found the Patriots guilty of wrongdoing because of Kraft's close relationship with NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell. He was largely referencing a photo of Goodell at Kraft's home after the AFC Championship that was (boldly) tweeted out by the official team account.
Sherman continued: "You talk about conflict of interest. As long as that happens, it won't affect them at all. Nothing will stop them."
When Belichick took the podium, he was quickly asked about the recent report that the NFL had obtained surveillance video of a locker room assistant carrying the footballs through Gillette Stadium during the AFC Championship game.
The coach, though, quickly swerved around the question and stuck to asserting that his only focus this week is the Seattle Seahawks.
Brady also largely stuck to discussing the upcoming game, saying only that Kraft had said "some very nice words" between getting off the plane — and presumably reading about the locker room attendant report — and the news conference.
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