My 15-year-old was joking the other day about what hell do when hes finally out from under my thumb:

First thing Im gonna do once I turn 18? Join a football team. Then the army!

I laughed, equally relieved that he understands these activities are forbidden and has shown no interest in pursuing them. I understand that my view comes from a place of privilege. We dont need a member of our family to become a professional athlete to lift us out of poverty, and Im fairly confident that we can find a way to fund my childs college education without a football scholarship (or one from the military, for that matter.)

Football isnt part of our lives, and I view it from an outsiders perspective, in the same light that I see bullfighting: a cultural tradition that, while troubling, holds deep meaning for many people meaning that inspires them to play the sport.

For football fans and players families, however, the calculus is a lot more complicated.

Concerns about the long-term impacts of repeated blows to the head that players sustain were front and center again last week after Miami Dolphins Tua Tagovailoa collided with a player for the Buffalo Bills. Tagovailoa hit his head against the back of the turf, and the Dolphins quickly confirmed that the blow had caused a concussion Tagovailoas career fourth.