Injuries in high impact sports have been found tube more detrimental than in years past. The players that are effected may not be aware of the complications until it is too late for them to recover. Lives are negatively effected and even ended any terrible injuries that could possibly be prevented.
Football players are exposed to concussions from head to head and head to ground impacts. The injuries they suffer can be immediate or long-term. For example, top level players, like Junior Seau, have taken their own lives because of CTE complications.The NFL has turned a blind eye for too many years to these injuries and complications because of them. People that participate in football and other high-impact sports are accepting of life changing injuries when they agree to play the sport, but they do not expect it to be life ending.
Rugby players do not suffer as many concussions as football players because of their body awareness on the field of play. They are taught to tackle differently and not use their heads as a device to bring down the opponent. When a rugby player uses their head in a tackle, they are susceptible to being knocked out and immediately learning that they need to change their technique.
Football players are padded, and they do not receive as much of an immediate effect from high-impact head injuries. The small amount of pain or “ringing” is brushed off as a good hit. The player then goes on to receive countless of these impacts which eventually manifest into permanent brain damage and at the worst, CTE.
Spinal injuries are more typical to rugby players. When good techniques are used, it is not always good enough. Bringing down an opponent at full speed is not always easy and safe. The pure inertia of stopping someone running full speed can compress the spine and cause immediate or future complications. Also, when players are involved in a scrum, they are susceptible to above average forces acting on their body, specifically their spine. In a scrum, eight players from each team essentially line up in one large group and push straight into each other for the ball. One can imagine what happens when their technique is not perfect or something goes wrong. The spine and major muscles in the body take the brunt of the torque and power applied. When there is by so many men exerting tremendous force.
Rowan Counterintuitive 