Luke Kuechly

Some folks might remember the picture that went viral around national media sources back in August of a Syrian boy injured by an airstrike in Aleppo. The shocking image really served as symbol of all the atrocities happening in Syria, evoking much stronger emotions and attention with one face than would 1,000 news articles and reports.


On November 18th, America received a similar image.


Luke Kuechly, middle linebacker for the Panthers and arguably the best defensive player in the entire NFL right now, was shown tearing up while being carted off the field after suffering a concussion.

This image is what football's concussion crisis is. It's not numbers. It's not statistics. It's not fantasy points. It's scary, inconvenient reality that was shoved in the face of a national audience during that game.

If you watch the hit that Kuechly takes from Saints running back Tim Hightower when he went down, you'd probably never guess that Kuechly suffered a concussion on the play. He was hit at the bottom of his facemask, not directly on the shell of his helmet, and the hit didn't seemed to be abnormally forceful or unexpected. While the replay was showing, the announcers speculated that he may have suffered a knee or leg injury. Even I, knowing his concussion history, thought that his injury was most likely an ACL tear. It wasn't until after Kuechly was carted off the field and examined in the locker room that the announcers found out and reported that he'd suffered a concussion.

Seeing an elite and well-respected player and person like Luke Kuechly crying after suffering a concussion is heart breaking. He missed around a month recovering from a concussion last year, if and when he steps on the field again, he's putting himself at an enormous risk.

I don't know what else to say except that I hope he gets well soon and I hope that this image makes more people aware of the impact that concussions have. I think we're at the point that anyone who watches football, even very casual fans, is aware that concussions in football exist. The next step is making people aware of the gravity of concussions.