Smart fan.  I don't know why people keep giving money and validation to such ineptitude.

The fact that you're still a fan after all of this validates their shittiness.

Nope.  People get second chances in other cultures.

I’m sure if we looked hard enough we could make the same conclusion about anyone who has a hero.

Saddest is that we pretend Armstrong is psychographically any different from the myriad of political and sporting heros that are still worshipped (ie Michael Jordan, Donald Trump, etc), such that we use shitting on him as an exercise in virtue signalling.

Right? We regularly elect pedophiles and sexual predators to public office, celebrate an era of unprecedented and racialized human trafficking as “not hate but heritage” yet dude who cheats at sports and is a dick about it is unredeemable? The uncritical self-righteousness can get overboard sometimes.

The irony being Ireland is way better at rugby than soccer.

Team sport doesnt mean communist economics.  It refers to the ethos of how the game is played on the field and how players interact with each other off of it.

The rate of injury can be reduced by rules changes - specifically removing helmets and enforcing rugby tackling rules. Owners have full control over this variable, and all they seem to want to do is minor, ineffective tweaks that more or less keep status quo. See pro rugby and its guaranteed contracts for how a sport…

Owners don’t honor contracts. Why should players.

They didn't freely negotiate anything.  NFLPA has little leverage because so many members can't afford to walk from bad deals.  Owners have most of the leverage, and they use it well.  Remember the lockout not too long ago?

Blaming players for operating within a financial situation built and maintained by owners makes zero sense.

Aaron Rodgers with the Packere is a perfect example of a single player being the difference between a playoff team and mediocrity.

Yeah, can you just bash your brains and get CTE for my personal enjoyment and stop thinking about your own well-being so goddamn much? Selfish players, just shutup and dribble, amiright?

Thats not how appeasement works.  Ask Britain

*someone with darker skin

That...seemed like a reasonable takeaway.

Or...hot take here...you can guarantee contracts AND provide performance bonuses.  They way they do in every other major sport.

Plenty of other sports that the elite athlete can play.  Few of which involve a vast majority getting CTE in return for maybe $1M career earnings.

Agents get a cut of the pretend contract number.  They are a huge and unacknowledged part of the problem.