Super Bowl Sunday: The day America celebrates football --- and brain damage
By George Will
Published Feb. 6, 2016
Here's an excerpt from the linked article:
How many deceased players had, and how many former players have, or how many current players will have, CTE is unknown because it can be confirmed only by autopsy. Its symptoms, however, are similar to those of dementia.
Football's kinetic energy is increasing as the players become bigger and even the biggest become faster. In 1980, only three NFL players weighed 300 or more pounds. This season, 354 did, including seven 350-pounders.