"...the level of venality and greed and cynicism required to perpetuate a business that depends on millions of people watching young men shorten their lives is breathtaking."

The NFL machine grinds on: I love football, but I can’t watch Super Bowl 50 — or the game, ever again

For too long, I looked past what I knew about the sport so I could enjoy it—but I can't ignore the truth anymore

SARAH C. BALDWIN

"The fact that the giant football machine grinds on despite the known risks to players’ sanity and lifespans can be explained by many things, the top two surely being love of the game and money. When did it go from being a sport to being a $10 billion corporatized entertainment industry? Perhaps I’m naïve, and football was always about greed. Still, the level of venality and greed and cynicism required to perpetuate a business that depends on millions of people watching young men shorten their lives is breathtaking. (So is NFL commissioner Roger Goodell’s $44 million salary.) Professional football, in Steve Almond’s words, is “capitalism on steroids.”

A third reason must be willful ignorance. I’m guilty. For a long time I filed away the information at hand so I could keep enjoying the occasional game."