There are a number of famous cases of players having their careers shortened due to concussions. Eric Lindros is the poster child for that. However, hockey is much less violent that football. CTE (chronic traumatic encephalopathy, which produces dementia and other symptoms), isn't well understood yet, but it seems to result from repeated blows to the head. NFLers are hitting each other every play for the whole game, not to mention practice, and all the hitting they've gone through growing up. It's not really comparable to other team sports in terms of violence. That said, both USA Hockey and Hockey Canada are trying their best to limit head contact to youth players. Each has raised the minimum checking age from 11 to 13 in recent years. There are positives and negatives to that decision, but I get why they did it, and I generally support it. There is a debate about fighting in the NHL right now, as it seems like the players who have had the most health problems are fighters (Bob Probert and Erik Boogaard, e.g.). It's a legit debate, and I don't really know where I stand on it. The NHL could certainly survive with a much more limited amount of violence; I'm not sure what the NFL's options are, as violence is inseparable from the game of football.
It's pretty similar to rugby, and I don't think rugby players get injured the way football players do. I'd bet that getting rid of football players' pads and helmets would change the kind of violence we see on the field.It's not really comparable to other team sports in terms of violence.
All of that makes sense. I was talking with a guy from Philadelphia the other day about Eric Lindros. Man, that guy was supposed to be the second coming… It's a shame. I'm not sure where I stand on the fighting either. On one hand, it's extremely exciting to watch and I would guess that most players would agree. Still, it's not why I watch hockey and I'd still love the sport even if it were gone. Does Probert have CTE problems? Man, that guy probably gave people CTE. He was a beast. You're right about the NFL, where can they go? Flag football?
Probert died of a heart attack likely due to cocaine abuse. The rumors are that his behavior was erratic and he suffered from depression, and may have had other symptoms consistent with CTE. His brain was examined postmortem, and they determined he did, in fact, have CTE.