Concussions scrutinized

SAN JOSE, Calif. — Former San Francisco 49ers great Steve Young makes it very clear: He has suffered no lingering effects from the concussions that played a role in his retirement in 2000.

But he knows other former players are hurting, because some have reached out to him.

"I hear from them because I was known for concussions," said Young, 45. "I talked to a couple of ex-players at the Super Bowl, and I had no idea they were struggling from side effects. They talked about being in their basements, depressed, and it's all related to this issue. It really opened my eyes."

The eyes of NFL officials also appear to be opening as concussion diagnosis and treatment becomes a hot-button topic at all levels of America's most popular sport — from the high schools up.

Commissioner Roger Goodell, reacting to the escalating debate, has convened a concussion symposium for June 19 that will bring together the medical staffs of each team. Also invited are experts who say the NFL long has downplayed its concussion problem and is not taking seriously the potential link between head injuries and long-term ailments such as dementia and Alzheimer's disease.

The league increasingly has found itself playing defense on the concussion question. A study of 2,552 retired NFL players published last month in the journal of the American College of Sports Medicine found a link between the number of concussions and diagnosed depression.

There was also the November suicide of former NFL defensive back Andre Waters, 44, whose autopsy revealed concussion-related brain damage. That was followed by 34-year-old former New England Patriot Ted Johnson going public with his dementia symptoms, which he says resulted from concussions.

Agent Leigh Steinberg calls the issue "a ticking time bomb" and has pushed the NFL to better address it. Clients of his, such as Young, Troy Aikman and Warren Moon, were plagued by concussions.

"This is a major shift in (the NFL's) thinking," Steinberg said. "Goodell is assembling a bigger tent for the doctors. He's a new commissioner, and when he and the owners see these studies and fully understand what they're risking, they'll need to do something."

Young applauds the league for trying to learn more.

"From talking to guys that I run into, it's clear that concussions will be a bigger part of the game," he said. "The game is faster and the players are bigger. It's just physics."