Such is the nature of football in the US, as professional and college-level organisations face growing evidence of their sport's appalling long-term health effects.
Former NFL players have inflated depression and migraine rates. Some researchers claim higher instances of suicide, and former footballers are more likely than others to suffer dementia.
The science behind football concussions and long-term brain damage is so compelling that President Barack Obama says he wouldn't allow a son of his to play football.
The NFL has offered almost $1 billion in reparations to thousands of former players who have permanent brain injuries. The judge considering the offer has indicated it is not nearly enough to cover the damage.
The problem with football is the padding. Not because it makes players sissies, or because it protects the tackled man.
But in much the same way that padded gloves make it easier for a boxer to kill someone, football helmets and shoulder pads protect the aggressor, the player making the hit. They're weapons.
And for all the rule changes and bans on helmet contact, players are still frequently knocked out of their senses.
In two years in America, I've come to love American football. It's strategically enthralling. It's battle, in digestible form. But if America's winter game can learn something from our own, it's that when considering player safety and padding, sometimes less is more.
