The Heavy Price of Playing Pro Football

This is something you usually don't see a media organization making news with their own study. In this case ESPN has conducted a study looking at the NFL and players misuse of prescription pain medications. According to their information 52% of retired players say they use prescription painkillers during their playing days and of those 71% said they misused them as players. Perhaps more disturbing is the fact that 15% admit they still use a medications even today. The study also found that 63% of retired players who use prescription medications while playing obtained them from nonmedical sources. We are only one week away from the Super Bowl and players who have sacrificed an entire season are playing for the championship. But with this latest study combined with several studies looking at concussions and their long-term effects like depression and Alzheimer's is becoming increasingly clear that professional football players are paying a price not only during the regular season but potentially throughout their entire lives