the monk wrote:
Thanks for that mate. And not a pad or crash helmet in sight. Rugby union and league players; and lets not forget Aussie rules and gaelic football guys are harder than what most NFL fans would come to expect. The true comparison of hardness would be for NFL to get rid of helmets and pads; as well as eliminate the crappy time outs. Then we'd be able to seperate the men from the boys.
Ok, I'm not going to rip on Rugby here because all sports are a little different and there's nothing wrong with that. But for Christs sake stop throwing the whole "pads and helmets" comment into the mix. Rugby players are tough, I'm sure of that. And they're likely more aerobically fit than football players. But make no mistake; NFL players, GENERALLY SPEAKING, are the biggest, strongest, fastest motherf***ing athletes on the planet. If they didn't wear pads and helmets, players would be dying right and left. Think about it. If Patrick Willis put a full speed hit on you, and you weren't wearing pads, you would die on impact. Even if you were a pretty big, athletic dude...your childhood memories would be erased from your brain by the time you hit the turf.
They wear protective equipment so the players can play full speed. It makes it more exciting to watch. Some people think watching players with no pads is more exciting. It's really a cultural thing I think. Americans like high speed collisions and things that go boom. I will admit though, I think there are actually too many safety rules in the NFL. If they keep trying to make the sport safer, it will eventually be a pussy sport.