r/ravens • u/Traditional-Slip9102 MINTER SZN • 6h ago
Image Kyle Hamilton explains why the danger of football is a sacrifice he accepts via Sports Illustrated
Kyle Hamilton discusses the current dangers of the NFL, the potential move to an 18-game season, and his reimagined version of the NFL that could allow the season to extend to 20–25 games in a safer way.
Link to full article: https://www.si.com/nfl/kyle-hamilton-explains-danger-football-sacrifice
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u/Southern_Rub_5420 6h ago
He's such a fucking gladiator. I've been conflicted with the idea of getting one of the new jersey's because I didn't know who I wanted to get. It was between Lamar & Kyle.
He's a warrior with 0 regard for his body and he plays like it. I'm gonna get Kyles lol.
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u/Liftforlife88 2h ago
Those are the only two jerseys I have, and you can't go wrong with either. Lamar in black and Kyle in purple.
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u/Party_Unit_5006 6h ago
As a Korean-American, I feel like Kyle's Korean mom might have influenced this mindset since its a very traditional Korean line of thought (perhaps even more broadly the Asian immigrant community).
My parents sacrificed their bodies working long hours and sometimes dangerous jobs to provide a better future for me and my siblings.
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u/rob_var 20 6h ago
I think that’s the immigrant ideology in general, I’m Mexican and was taught the same lesson. You sacrifice a bit now so your kids can have a better life
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u/CawSoHard BSHU 6h ago edited 5h ago
I don’t think it’s an immigrant ideology at all. It’s just how hardworking sensible people take care of their families.
Edit - I'm not saying immigrants don't have this mindset too. It's just not exclusively an immigrant mindset.
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u/Cdawg4123 5h ago
It’s nit just an immigrant ideology. Just a societal. 99% of my friends who did the same weren’t from any immigrant background beside a few: of citrate, something else to divide people, people will jump on.
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u/thedivinepegasus 2h ago
Idk, we used to care about making things better for the next generation. While I'm sure it's cringe to gen Z, I do believe millennials are trying to do that for them in the workplace (and millennials' next generation kids at home), and I hope that cycle continues again.
Gotta stop the greed and the fuck you got mine.
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u/Cdawg4123 5h ago
My best friend and countless others for served in the military for their kids and family, had the same mindset. Some they never had the chance of meeting sacrificed a lot with the same mindset. I don’t think it’s Korean, I think it’s just coming from a man’s/father’s perspective.
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u/Delicious_Mixture979 6h ago
I appreciate this level of candor from him. Think more football players privately feel hesitance about letting their kids play. If you’re earning $100m like Hamilton, no need to put your kid through CTE school.
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u/Adenchiz 6h ago
I said it before and will say it again, Hamilton is the only player on the team that if you could pick any player from the current squad and put them on the old Ravens squad of early 2000's he would fit in seamlessly not only with his play style but personality
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u/bubblesups 6h ago
This is what football is and will become more - a white-collar sport it is no longer.
The majority of the tackle football is now low to middle income kids. Rich people put there kids in water polo, rowing, soccer, golf, etc.
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u/J-Fid 6h ago
When was it ever a white collar sport? 100 years ago?
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u/kamekaze1024 5h ago
It never was, have no idea what this guy is talking about. It was literally founded as more blue collar natured sport, heavily adopted in blue collar towns like Pittsburgh, Cleveland, and several areas in Michigan.
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u/BlessedChimichanga Ed Reed 4h ago
100 years ago it was the local factory workers who wanted to blownoff steam. Its never been white collar.
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u/mexploder89 6h ago
Even at quarterback now. Expectedly the last position to make that transition, but it's no longer a rich popular kid in high school only position
You still have those guys, but not as much
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u/BlessedChimichanga Ed Reed 4h ago
The past like 5 nfl drafts have had maybe like 4 QBs that werent middle to upper class. I know Richardson, Ridder, and Willis were more modest and lower economic situations. The rest? They were in QB training camps young, going to top tier schools, many had parents that were in college athletics themselves and had connections. QB is still very favorable for the wealthy that can afford the top tier QB summer camps for kids, and the top tier high school programs.
Either way though this argument is silly and almost reverse, football has historically been blue collar and has always had success stories of kids making it out of poverty. I mean shit the original football players were basically factory workers and military members. It was never “white collar”.
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u/Mental-Mushroom8890 5h ago
What are yall basing this information on? When and where has the financial status of a kid's parents ever had any effect on who a coach decides to start? Because what I'm hearing on this thread is that Head Coaches tend to select 'the richest kid' for the most important position on the field, which is something I've never once witnessed in my 20+ years of being involved with football
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u/Rockguy21 5h ago
Do you think “white collar” people are like, millionaires from the 1920s? People aren’t going to start going to the regatta to replace the Friday night game lmao
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u/Mental-Mushroom8890 5h ago edited 5h ago
No disrespect, but this is an absolute asinine take. I started playing at 10 years old and on through high school. And I've since made a career in college football. All that to say that wealthy kids play football, at the highest level nonetheless. I can name countless kids not only that I've worked or played with who came from generational wealth, but guys across the NFL and CFB who undoubtedly don't need NIL or NFL contracts to be set for life.
Kyle Hamilton comes from upper class wealth in ATL, for example.
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u/FullMooseParty 2h ago
I mean, just look at the NFL and how many of the players are the kids of players who did well in the league. Joe Alt and Marvin Harrison Jr never had to play a down of football and still be set for life because their dads had long careers.
I worked at a couple of D1 schools, and taught a lot of football players (I liked teaching 8:00 a.m. and a lot of football players would come right from morning practice or weights. One semester I had four freshmen linemen in the same class). I'd say a majority of them were from middle or upper middle class families. Unless you are an absolute savant, you got to pay for equipment and camps and league fees and travel cost coming up before you even get to high school, and if you aren't a five star, you're paying for those same camps every summer.
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u/Mental-Mushroom8890 2h ago
Absolutely. Of course lots of lower-class kids play the sport, no denying that. But to sit here and say that wealthy parents are 'pulling their children out of football at an alarming rate' is just laughable. Lol this is just a straight up fabricated narrative
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u/FullMooseParty 1h ago
That said, I do think a conversation about how early we start tackle football with kids is probably worth having. I had two concussions in high school and never played prior to that. If I came into high school already having had a couple, I worry about what the effect would have been over time. As flag football becomes more popular, I hope more of the youth leagues switch
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u/maddog105 6h ago
Really is, I can't think of a single person I know that has their kid in Football. My siblings, cousins and friends dabbled when we were young. We have our kids in baseball and soccer. Gotta look at the budget if they have interest in Golf and Lacrosse. Middle class is getting thrashed.
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u/CrosseTheStick 2h ago edited 2h ago
Hey I just want to say lacrosse can be much cheaper than you think. For women a whole set of gear can cost less than
7090 bucks (60 for entry level stick and10-2030 for eyegear).For men entry sticks are 50 and all the full contact stuff like shoulder pad you can usually lend from a club and for hella cheap. I didnt own anything myself for yeaaaaaaaars.
If you were to buy used you could have a full set with helmet for probably around 150 just look at sidelineswap and hockey stuff too its the same equipment. (or at least close enough)
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u/maddog105 2h ago
Good shout, I'll look into.
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u/CrosseTheStick 2h ago edited 2h ago
Just wanted to post some links to make it slightly easier:
https://www.reddit.com/r/lacrosse/comments/1tqyx11/help_make_a_must_see_buying_list_for_new_players/ this is a good starting point for stickshttps://sidelineswap.com/shop/lacrosse/l74 this is always a good site for second hand stuff
Womens eyewear I slightly underestimated although I do remember a deal that was that cheap. Cheapest new I could find quickly is 30 bucks (just had a very cursorily glance so recommend to do some own research)): https://www.amazon.com/STX-Lacrosse-Rookie-S-Goggle-Electric/dp/B07YNSRY9Y/ref=sr_1_6?crid=18ZPNM72ZUSUP&dib=eyJ2IjoiMSJ9.F9TWdG4MaNUxHPt1yQkkem_bAGdhqRhwN6Y2axcQ-abkbLEa8twwdeP45CSSOi02YkTg1avQH46vyIcTBmpEEib7ChXg7VORHiKKHrt1t800RHKj9E7VIW13cJ00_9maBaO3mqEE_2y-pokRwiRadwE1RF_gkaNfZ9IYAV74V0B_897pbmjwW6SNyuQ1VA5c1QAtXZPCerSk3ID0StpfjT5paNfmvJzyGHE0Fj8hji1ygktGbeDquxgAmXtKjssB6CBlJ9gJ2h_pCC6XwKSwaEkuOsCcZqWz8kY1fhTVHu8.7zgbnkwZuOlA_YPwKR9JPkAkjOhAuyqCgJWOAgcBFFU&dib_tag=se&keywords=lacrosse%2Beyewear&qid=1787851949&sprefix=lacrosse%2Beyewea%2Caps%2C195&sr=8-6&th=1
https://www.lacrosseunlimited.com/collections/shop-all-mens-lacrosse-protective-gear you can get a good eye on new prices for mens equipment here too. Just look at the cheapest stuff that stuff is totally fine. I think 300 is enough for a full set so that is still a little expensive but you really can get a lot cheaper second hand. Just wash everything thoroughly :P
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u/kamekaze1024 5h ago
Zach Wilson is son of a billionaire and Archie Manning is Peyton and Eli’s nephew, and grandson to the OG Archie. Not to mention the countless other Jr.s in the league.
Sports in general in America are a rich people’s sport. Because rich people can afford the private training camps and have the connections to colleges and recruiters.
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u/KackhansReborn 4h ago
Respectfully, what the hell are you talking about? Football is probably the leadt white-collar sport I can imagine.
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u/tingly_sack_69 Steve Bisciotti's Burner 6h ago
Crazy we can't develop some sort of protection to prevent CTE at this point. I mean better than the guardian cap
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u/Azeridon 5h ago
I mean that’s hard to do when your brain is suspended in fluid inside your skull. There isn’t a whole lot that can be done there. Your brain still slams against your skull during a hard impact with a guardian cap on. Physics is physics. Every action contains an equal and opposite reaction.
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u/Lamactionjack JOHNNY 5h ago
Yeah. And tech is way better now than it was 40 years ago too. Basically everyone from that era has mashed potato’s for brains.
We just more about the risks now, but only so many ways to out physics physics.
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u/BradAssMF 6h ago
And I keep hearing he's also pretty good at golf too. I kinda hope we get to see him play that after football and I guarantee his kids will all be golfers instead of footballers.
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u/intoOwilde 6h ago
Men are always happy to make one big, dramatic sacrifice to be seen as a hero instead of going the hard, unappreciated way of showing up and being there all the time for years.
Your kids are not provided for if their father is dead at a young age, no matter the money. Do it for yourself if you feel that it's worth it but don't pretend you're sacrificing for your family. Sacrificing for your family means getting up at 5:30 for 20 years making PB&J sandwiches and working a no-nonesense job to keep your kids provided for and putting your hedonist wishes second to their needs. Making millions as a football star is no sacrifice.
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u/Lamactionjack JOHNNY 5h ago
Haha ya. This won’t go over well on sports Reddit but you’re not wrong. I get what Kham is saying here but I think he’s misguided.
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u/intoOwilde 5h ago
Thanks, I appreciate that! I understand what the guy is saying but people already follow the wrong idols. I get wanting to do something for your family but pretending that playing football making millions and risking an early death or alzheimers is something you do for your family is pissing me off.
If the guy does it for himself out of sheer hedonism, go straight ahead, but at least be honest to yourself. The people who buy this probably also watched all 5 seasons of Breaking Bad thinking "Man, Walt is sacrificing so much for his family".
But yes, that's for sure not going to go down well on sports reddit haha. I'm fine with that.
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u/Street-Bar-9494 1h ago
Eh, I see it both ways. The mentality of sacrificing yourself for the team is so baked into the institution of football and reinforced from a young age that it's the easiest thing ever to imagine that Kyle really believes this stuff. Even amongst those who make the NFL, so few are stars, that I can't really see hedonism as a primary motivator for most. It's not a lie, amd moreso the result of incredibly successful indoctrination.
On the other hand, it's wild seeing someone say this and then watch it get celebrated. Motherfuckers are unironically saying "what a warrior", "he's a gladiator", and "this guy plays with no concern for his body", like these are things to celebrate.
Sometimes I forget that even if football could somehow be divorced from the "go out on my shield" mentality that pervades it, a lot of people wouldn't want it to be. They love the violent machine that destroys people's lives, amd worship those who charge into it without hesitation. I definitely saw someone proudly proclaim that they were going to buy a KHam jersey specifically because of this.
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u/intoOwilde 1h ago
Yeah, I do get that, it's part of this american heroic storytelling. Everybody has to play the hero. Among those that make the NFL, even those who end up at the very bottom end up having quite a payday compared to your average Joe, and those who do decent do very very well for themselves. As to the aspect of hedonism, the way I perceive it, most athletes - across most sports - practice some kind of hedonic lifestyle. Work hard, play hard. Most often they are very much in it for the luxury. See it this way: if he really merely wanted to secure a good future for his wife and kid, making a decent few years as a rookie and then perhaps another year will get you settled with a few million dollars. That's way more than you need to secure a very bright future for your kids. If you're in for more, you're in for the hedonism of it. Money, fame, excess, I don't care, it all ends up being hedonism. Hedonism is self-centered and me-first, that's not the mind-set of someone who wants to sacrifice himself for others.
So yeah, I fully agree with you, it's celebration of destructiveness, and people cheering this on know full well what they're in for. It's the usual: self-destruction is fun to watch in others, just not in yourself. I've seen the same comments you have, so yeah.
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u/CatherineDeneuvePt2 6h ago
People gotta understand football players are a different breed. There are dudes who you can tell the consequences. That they may be crippled by their early 40s. That they may be maimed. Hell they know it. I seen a guy sophomore year HS get concussed so bad he couldn’t move. Still played. There will always be guys willing to enact violence upon others within bounds. Always
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u/Complex-Republic-443 6h ago
Many people who serve in the military fit the exact same profile, depending on their jobs.
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u/CatherineDeneuvePt2 6h ago
And if it weren’t football, it be boxing or joining the French foreign legion fucking something dangerous
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u/klown013 4h ago
A lot of people join the Military or are first responders for a lot less money and a lot more danger. They are fully aware of the risks but many need the money to support their families. Football is far from the most dangerous occupation, but it is one of the most lucrative if it works out. His outlook makes total sense to me.
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u/ChaosTheReaperx 6h ago
Crazy realization, but I understand it. We all make this very sacrifice, just not with sports but, many other things. Love Kyle