“In Roman times, people would come cheer the gladiators\u2026 And then when they were done with them, as you know historically, they fed them to the lions” \u2013 Harvey Steinberg<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Steinberg, the attorney representing former NFL defensive lineman Justin Bannan, argued that American society is failing its NFL gladiators.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Bannan suffers from the effects of chronic head trauma from his 12-year NFL career. In September 2021, Bannan was found guilty of attempted murder<\/a> and faces a minimum of 10 years<\/a> in prison for shooting a female acupuncturist. Bannan, part owner of the building where the shooting took place, claimed he was hiding from the Russian Mafia when he shot an unsuspecting woman.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Americans love to watch NFL football on Sunday, but we seldom discuss the effects this gladiator sport has on our favorite athletes and the society we live in. Despite America\u2019s infatuation with the sport, it\u2019s beginning to realize the physical toll associated with its gladiator obsession.<\/p>\n\n\n\n As the prevalence of a \u201cgridiron to jail pipeline\u201d continues to rise, what happens when America\u2019s best athletes spend years banging their heads together? How does the criminal legal system fill the void for treatment and care? And how does systemic racism dictate who\u2019s harmed?<\/p>\n\n\n\n The racial make-up of the United States, which sends more people to jail than any other country in the world<\/a>, informs this country\u2019s attitude toward crime.<\/p>\n\n\n\n By simply criminalizing behavior and blaming the individual, we miss the opportunity to address root causes of crime, to tackle social inequities, and to prevent re-occurrences of violence. With a prison population that is disproportionately comprised of Black and Brown men, we need to know why these otherwise successful NFL players are ending up in jail.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Underscoring all of this is that Black men are disproportionality socialized to be athletes and thus endure disproportionate trauma. Because adequate support is not readily available, a painful transition from successful NFL players to injured, suffering, and sometimes dangerous individuals is a reality for some former players. The NFL itself is complicit, as its race normed tests <\/a>disproportionality prevented Black players from receiving settlements that averaged $500,000 for suffering adverse health conditions related to concussions.<\/p>The NFL\u2019s CTE Blinders<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n