As Kaden enters into his second season of flag football there is no doubt that he loves the game (of football) and one day he and I will have to make a decision regarding moving up to tackle football.
Like most reasonable parents I want my son to be able to do what he loves, but at the end of the day I also want him to be safe.
The impact on football and physical well being continues to be a hot topic among parents and coaches. Head injuries continuing to be the leading concern of those citing that football is no longer safe for our youth.
ESPN’s Outside The Lines has reported that Pop Warner football, “the largest youth football organization in the world; has seen participation drop 9.5 percent between 2010 – 2012. “The largest decline since the organization began keeping statistics more than two decades ago.”
The decline in participation suggests that due to safety issues football is no longer King and more parents are steering their youth in a different direction. NFL officials, all the way down to the head of Pop Warner are scrambling to make changes to the game to minimize the head impact and create a safe environment but will it be enough?
For some parents the risk of head injury will outweigh any protective measures and football will not be an option.
For this parent flag football will continue to be the option for Kaden and I will continue to keep a close watch on the statistics, the research and the evolution of tackle football. We will not be in any hurry to put Kaden in pads (Pop Warner) as he can learn the basics of the game playing flag football.
Mother and Son Sports will continue to follow this ever changing story (the story of football) and provide the latest information on youth football safety statistics.
For now Kaden, along with millions of other kids will continue to learn and play a game that he loves. He can worry about getting a first down, and I will worry about keeping him safe.
Source: ESPN- Outside The Lines
by Stacey Atkinson