Junior Seau apparent suicide

decal

http://www.nytimes.com/2012/05/03/sports/football/junior-seau-famed-nfl-linebacker-dies-at-43-in-apparent-suicide.html

hochpt21

Thats F-ing crazy.

rooftop59

Wow that is awful. I feel for his poor kids. I'm not sure how teenagers recover from something like this.

leroyjr1

What a cowardly thing to do.

codyc1ark

leroyjr1 wrote: »

What a cowardly thing to do.

I don't know, how many concussions did you receive in your 20 year NFL career?

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/09/30/sports/football/30dementia.html?pagewanted=all

Needless to say, we enjoy watching this game, but it had DEVISTATING effects on the people who play it. I'm past due for a shoulder operation from an injury I received as a jr in HS, and I only played through the HS level. There has been numerous suicides by ex nfl players, and most suffered from some sort of dementia. I can't imagine the effects of feeling like an 80 year old when I was 43...

Sorry if I seemed harsh Leroy, be we DO have to take into account some of the factors here...

dekuda

codyc1ark wrote: »

I don't know, how many concussions did you receive in your 20 year NFL career?

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/09/30/sports/football/30dementia.html?pagewanted=all

Needless to say, we enjoy watching this game, but it had DEVISTATING effects on the people who play it. I'm past due for a shoulder operation from an injury I received as a jr in HS, and I only played through the HS level. There has been numerous suicides by ex nfl players, and most suffered from some sort of dementia. I can't imagine the effects of feeling like an 80 year old when I was 43...

Sorry if I seemed harsh Leroy, be we DO have to take into account some of the factors here...

I agree.Double D, Dave Duerson of the Bears commited suicide about 1-2 years ago and he left a note asking that his brain be used to research the effects of how head trauma( concussions) were causing his illness. There have been some hockey players also that commited suicide.Most of them were the brawlers/hard hitters....... the common link were concussions.

lifelongnewb

Terrible....just terrible..what a player.......

leroyjr1

codyc1ark wrote: »

I don't know, how many concussions did you receive in your 20 year NFL career?

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/09/30/sports/football/30dementia.html?pagewanted=all

Needless to say, we enjoy watching this game, but it had DEVISTATING effects on the people who play it. I'm past due for a shoulder operation from an injury I received as a jr in HS, and I only played through the HS level. There has been numerous sucides by ex nfl players, and most suffered from some sort of dementia. I can't imagine the effects of feeling like an 80 year old when I was 43...

Sorry if I seemed harsh Leroy, be we DO have to take into account some of the factors here...

Everyone has their own opinion, no biggie. It still is no excuse IMO to commit suicide. No one forced him to play football and if football became too much for his body he should've retired years before he did but he didn't. He played 20 years. Just because some do it don't make it right, health problems or not.

So you agree with suicide? I don't.

AsSiMiLaTeD

People who play football choose to do so knowing the risks. I feel bad for him and his family, but I agree it's a selfish cowardly thing to do.

rooftop59

Really? The 13 year old boy who idolizes football players knew what he was getting himself into? A person frontal lobe where most decisions are made isnt fully developed until the mid 20s at which point he had already sustained lots of head injuries, the extent of which we were not aware of until recently and still not completely. I am not denying him all responsibility but certainly the owners and tv stations etc who make billions every year - ie the machine - has to be partially to blame here.

NE1410S

I have a hard time feeling sorry for people who take known risks (and get paid real well) and suddenly, or over time, those risks catch up to them. The survivors are a different story.

tonyb

rooftop59 wrote: »

Really? The 13 year old boy who idolizes football players knew what he was getting himself into? A person frontal lobe where most decisions are made isnt fully developed until the mid 20s at which point he had already sustained lots of head injuries, the extent of which we were not aware of until recently and still not completely. I am not denying him all responsibility but certainly the owners and tv stations etc who make billions every year - ie the machine - has to be partially to blame here.

C'mon man, really ? Are the owners suppose to supply an Iron man suit to every player ? How about this, maybe quit the game sooner instead of playing too long ? You don't have to be a rocket scientist to know you can only take so many knocks on the knoggin' before something goes askew. Same with Boxing. Quit the frickin' game instead of trying for that last title when your past your prime. Nobody forced these guys to play, they decided that and they should hold responsibility for their own health. The power of money though, can twist even the most logical of minds.

thsmith

No matter the reason people that that takethem selves out have a mental illness, until you have walked in thier shoes and felt debilitating depression.

Easy to sit back and have an opinion. Part of the problem in our society is high mighty judgemental attitudes.

chumlie

Rest In Peace Junior.

rooftop59

tonyb wrote: »

C'mon man, really ? Are the owners suppose to supply an Iron man suit to every player ? How about this, maybe quit the game sooner instead of playing too long ? You don't have to be a rocket scientist to know you can only take so many knocks on the knoggin' before something goes askew. Same with Boxing. Quit the frickin' game instead of trying for that last title when your past your prime. Nobody forced these guys to play, they decided that and they should hold responsibility for their own health. The power of money though, can twist even the most logical of minds.

Tony you are missing he point. The most devastating injuries happen before the frontal lobe is fully develOped. Continuing to play is not the issue. It's that these kinds of injuries often happen at a very young age - jr high or hs - and then aren't noticed until the dementia or other symptoms set it much later.Furthermore, the frontal lobe is the source of reasoning and decision making, so once the damage is done that person isn't real fit to make a decision about whether or not to continue playing.

All that said, I will not let my son play football. But thats another discussion...

tonyb

I don't think it's a matter of being judgemental. I do think however that these guys are taken right out of college and treated like Gods, with a paycheck to match that atitude. Maybe the NFL could make them take yearly classes in the off season and prepare these guys for the end of their career, and make them more aware of the signs that they took too many knocks. Also, the NFL could enforce a playing time limit, and keep a rotation so that the same player isn't constantly taking hits the whole game. That would be lame though because most come to see the first stringers and obviously the objective is to win. I forsee in the end the NFL might be forced to limit careers, like 5 years for linemen. After that, the risk will be too great if they are forced to pay for the players bad decision to keep playing the game.

tonyb

rooftop59 wrote: »

Tony you are missing he point. The most devastating injuries happen before the frontal lobe is fully devel

Gotcha, that would explain many other things too.:cheesygrin:

PreCd

I have sympathy for anyone who commits suicide, alone, without taking the life or injuring another. Stop and think about what it would take to get some of us in that position and then think how miserable we would have to feel before making that decision. That was Junior Seau.

leroyjr1

thsmith wrote: »

No matter the reason people that that takethem selves out have a mental illness, until you have walked in thier shoes and felt debilitating depression.

Easy to sit back and have an opinion. Part of the problem in our society is high mighty judgemental attitudes.

How do you explain the people that has walked in his shoes and knows what he was going through doing still alive. Suicide isn't normal or should ever be treated as a respectable way to deal with issues.

PreCd

What makes you think you know what he was going through?

leroyjr1 wrote: »

How do you explain the people that has walked in his shoes and knows what he was going through doing still alive. Suicide isn't normal or should ever be treated as a respectable way to deal with issues.

leroyjr1

PreCd wrote: »

What makes you think you know what he was going through?

Don't know what he was going through and neither do you. Never said I did. Me commenting is not directed only at him but others that feel this is the only alternative when it's not. Sure he's no longer dealing with his issues but now his family is suffering because of his actions. If his actions only affected him then I guess there wouldn't be a problem but it doesn't.

Toolfan66

My little sister committed suicide in 04 flame on that!!!


In the end we all die!! People that die of cancer affects everyone around them as well not like it's any easier for the family

BTW my mom died of cancer just a few years ago so yes I do know..

PreCd

You are full of it. Conversation over.

leroyjr1 wrote: »

Don't know what he was going through and neither do you. Never said I did. Me commenting is not directed only at him but others that feel this is the only alternative when it's not. Sure he's no longer dealing with his issues but now his family is suffering because of his actions. If his actions only affected him then I guess there wouldn't be a problem but it doesn't.

tonyb

leroyjr1 wrote: »

Don't know what he was going through and neither do you. Never said I did. Me commenting is not directed only at him but others that feel this is the only alternative when it's not. Sure he's no longer dealing with his issues but now his family is suffering because of his actions. If his actions only affected him then I guess there wouldn't be a problem but it doesn't.

So then I guess you could say he was selfish ? Not careing about the ones he left behind ? Seems to me thats a human trait, not a desease, as some would suggest. None of us know the particulars of why he did what he did. Sad that it happened none the less.

F1nut

That makes 8 Chargers from the 1994 Super Bowl team that have died one way or the other. I wonder if they made a deal with the devil.

schwarcw

RIP Junior! Great career and a sad ending. Prayers for his family and loved ones.

nooshinjohn

codyc1ark wrote: »

I don't know, how many concussions did you receive in your 20 year NFL career?

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/09/30/sports/football/30dementia.html?pagewanted=all

Needless to say, we enjoy watching this game, but it had DEVISTATING effects on the people who play it. I'm past due for a shoulder operation from an injury I received as a jr in HS, and I only played through the HS level. There has been numerous suicides by ex nfl players, and most suffered from some sort of dementia. I can't imagine the effects of feeling like an 80 year old when I was 43...

Sorry if I seemed harsh Leroy, be we DO have to take into account some of the factors here...

I was thinking exactly the same thing. This is a horrible loss for his family and his friends. Being a fan of the NFL looking in, it is impossible for me to fathom the punishment he was put through over the course of a 20 year career. No judgement from me, just god bless his family at this time. His poor greiving mother is absolutely devastated by all this. I hope she can find some peace through all of this.

The NFL is fun to watch, but looking back on how the game and the payers have evolved over the decades since my first game back in 1973 at the Met Center watching Fran Tarkenton beat the Packers, it has become a completely different game. do you think anybody would stop watching if they dialed things back a bit? I remember watching a defensive back drop Fran to the turf, and there was no victory celebration the way Jared Allen dances afterwards. Instead, the hand of a gentleman came down and helped Fran back to his feet. The play was over, the whistle had blown. I guess that was then....

nooshinjohn

leroyjr1 wrote: »

Everyone has their own opinion, no biggie. It still is no excuse IMO to commit suicide. No one forced him to play football and if football became too much for his body he should've retired years before he did but he didn't. He played 20 years. Just because some do it don't make it right, health problems or not.

So you agree with suicide? I don't.

Nor do I... the cowards way out IMHO. That said, we just don't know how repetitive concussions affect the brain. It is entirely possible that the ability to make those kinds of descisions is irreparably damaged somehow. A few years ago, Junior became violent towards his girlfriend and then hours later pushed the accelerator pedal of his SUV to the floor and went off a cliff. (I understand he said it was an accident, but given today's events and what immediately preceded his crash, I am not so sure...)That is not rational by any means.

Who knows just how much damage is being done?

DMara

I love the way Seau played the game, other than that, I respect his personal decision. If he can't enjoy his life, go ahead and leave. There's no need to stick around to endure anything; his own family might be one of the reasons for him to do so. Rest in peace, Junior!

dekuda

I am not admonishing these players for what they do .Dave Duerson left a suicide note saying his brain be donated to a clinic for study.He shot himself in the chest and not in the brain. Seau shot himself in the chest.Not saying there is any link here and that Seau's suicide haves anything to do with brain trauma.Ray Easterling suffered severe dimentia and commited suicide. Thare are over 1300 lawsiutes from older NFL players regarding the dangers of head trauma.Many of them are suffering some form of illness.If you get one concussion you are four time likely to get a second according to neurologists. The research from the NFL and medical field is ongoing. Guys, this revealation of head trauma illnesses is still in the research stage. Many of these players played before knowing the risks of head trauma. I do not accept what Seau did but I did not walk in his shoes. If he was going through dementia and depression as Duerson and other players have then it is truly sad and how can anyone judge there decisions? But what is even sadder is what there families have to go through. RIP Junior

rooftop59

This is precisely the point. Did they know they were playing a rough and potentially dangerous sport? Yes. They were aware of potential knee and back problems that might plague them the rest of their lives (or should have been aware). Did they know that a couple concussions at the right point in their brain development could leave them (sometimes severely) mentally damaged for the rest of their lives? No. They had no way of knowing that until very recently, which was too late tragically.