Brett Favre is remembered for his Hall of Fame football career, but if he has his way, he’ll also be known as much for ending youth tackle football in America. The former NFL MVP has become the face of the movement.
“I think it’s going to take someone who has poured his blood, sweat and tears into it,” Favre told Alex Raskin of the Daily Mail.
Favre supports a proposed Illinois bill that would make it illegal for kids under 12 to play tackle football. The Dave Duerson Act to Prevent CTE does not have enough support to pass, per Raskin.
But Favre wants federal legislation.
“The state level is a start, but we have to adopt this plan and all do it together,” he said. “The body, the brain, the skull is not developed in your teens and single digits. I cringe. I see these little kids get tackled, and the helmet is bigger than everything else on the kid combined. They look like they’re going to break in half.”
President Donald Trump did not help Favre’s cause in September when he claimed the NFL’s new rules aimed at decreasing the number of concussions are “ruining the game.”
Favre respectfully disagrees.
“The President can say what he wants,” Favre said. “It is a serious issue, and it needs to be dealt with.”
Favre openly has talked about his concerns about chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE) after taking the number of hits he took in a 20-year, 302-game NFL career. He has said he was diagnosed with “three or four” concussions during his career but guesses he had “probably thousands.”