Recently, it was announced that Arizona Cardinals’ running back, Rashard Mendenhall, had retired at the young age of twenty-six after just a six-year career in the NFL.  The University of Illinois graduate suffered his second fatal injury to his knees during this past season and could no longer deal with the toll that football put on his body.  Mendenhall was an above average running back, rushing for slightly below four yards per carry en route to surpassing 4,000 yards and 37 touchdowns during his injury plagued tenure as a pro.  Additionally, he helped the Pittsburgh Steelers reach Super Bowl XLV in 2011.

However, in this case, a series of somewhat impressive accomplishments is not the focus of Mendenhall’s announcement.  Instead, a pattern has shown itself over recent years in the NFL.  Players who dedicate their lives to the game of football are risking fatal injuries every single time they step on the field.  Young men’s careers and abilities to physically function properly are being cut short time after time again, thus bringing up an intriguing question: is it worth the risk to play in the NFL?

There is no doubt that it is a special thing to play in the National Football League.  A life of gaudy paychecks, worldwide exposure, and pure adrenaline and competition await most that enter the league.  However, what’s often overlooked is the extreme risk taken by each athlete every time they lace up their cleats.  Careers cut short are no longer a monumental surprise but, in fact, a somewhat normal occurrence.

For example, legendary quarterbacks, Steve Young and Troy Aikman, both saw their careers abruptly end after suffering brutal concussions.  These fatal injuries don’t just disappear once a man leaves the football field for good.  A clean, aggressive football play can result in permanent, life-long damage and greatly alter a young man’s future.

One of the most influential people in today’s sports world is a prime example.  October 16, 2010 seemed like a perfectly normal game day for defensive tackle Eric LeGrand of Rutgers University, certainly not one that would shake up his world for the rest of time.  The Knights’ defenseman made a tackle on a kick return against Army on what seemed like a very ordinary play.  One thing was far from normal though: LeGrand could not rise from the ground.  To this day, Eric LeGrand is paralyzed from the waist down, unable to walk or use the lower half of his body at all.  As positive and persistent as the young hero may be, Eric LeGrand’s situation is a perfect example of the danger football offers to those who play it.  With athletes continuously growing stronger and faster, these injuries are becoming more and more prevalent as the years pass by, and players are placing their careers and lives in jeopardy every time they step on the football field.

Football will miss Rashard Mendenhall, but his early retirement will remind the NFL community of the risk and horrible reality the sport embraces.