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I love football. And I love my Broncos. I remember cheering on John Elway as he grabbed, not one, but two, Super Bowl titles. My most recent memory includes standing on a bar chair two weeks ago, singing We Are the Champions with my fellow Broncos fans while John Elway — a lot more grey than in 1998 — again lifted the Lombardi trophy over his head.

While watching the Super Bowl was the highlight of my week — daresay month — I’m still stuck on an image, or images, that aired before the game.

In its true self-congratulatory manner, the NFL hosted the league’s past Super Bowl MVPs in a ceremony before Super Bowl 50, announcing each winner in chronological order. While I was mainly playing a game of “who’s that?” with my friends, I couldn’t help but notice each man’s stiff and painful walk to the bleachers after their names were announced. Terry Bradshaw, 67, walked like a 75-year-old, and even my hero John Elway had a slight limp to his step. It was as if, with each MVP announced, I was watching a PSA of what years of football does to the body.

This has been a hot topic recently, but talk mainly centers around damage that is sometimes less visible than a limp or a stiff walk — chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE). CTE is a degenerative disease, believed to be caused by repeated brain injury with symptoms that include memory impairment, mood problems, behavior changes, and motor problems.

A study released before last season and reported by Frontline found that 87 out of 91 former NFL players tested for CTE were found to have the disease — a whopping 96 percent. In 2015, the NFL reached a $1B settlement with more than 5000 former NFL players who sued the league for allegedly hiding the dangers of concussions, although the NFL still publicly denied that football is dangerous. Will Smith’s latest film, Concussion — in which he plays Bennet Omalu, the forensic pathologist who first discovered the link between playing football and CTE — further put the issue in the spotlight.

The league introduced new initiatives to reduce concussions last year, and commissioner Roger Goodell said he would fully support his young son if he were to ever play football. While Goodell’s statement fits with his roll at the NFL, I still wonder if he is playing chicken, especially given the recent research around the disease. Only time, and unfortunately more NFL players diagnosed with CTE, will tell.

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