Tragedy of Junior Seau's Suicide Will Bring About Important Awareness

It was another tragic loss to the NFL world when Junior Seau was found dead at his home Wednesday. It was a foregone conclusion that Seau, a 12-time Pro Bowl and 10-time All-Pro selection, would one day be inducted into the pro football Hall of Fame.

Arguably the best defender of his era, Seau endured a 20-year career, which is unprecedented in the NFL, and he also played in two Super Bowls (XXIX, XLII).

As for trying to prevent this type of tragedy from occurring in the future, we can only hope to increase awareness from Seau's suicide. According to Sam Farmer of the Los Angeles Times, Seau's family has agreed to allow his brain to be examined, which is a step in the right direction:

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The family of deceased NFL star Junior Seau has decided to allow researchers to study his brain for evidence of damage as the result of concussions, San Diego Chargers chaplain Shawn Mitchell said.

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In addition to taking continuous steps toward suicide prevention, it's unfortunate that this kind of tragedy is what it takes to increase the awareness of the potential aftereffects from playing the game of football.

Seau himself even expressed concern about the NFL changing rules and trying to make the game safer. In an article by Jim Trotter of Sports Illustrated, Trotter spoke with Seau in March about the changes:

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"It has to happen," he said. "Those who are saying the game is changing for the worse, well, they don't have a father who can't remember his name because of the game. I'm pretty sure if everybody had to wake with their dad not knowing his name, not knowing his kids' name, not being able to function at a normal rate after football, they would understand that the game needs to change. If it doesn't there are going to be more players, more great players, being affected by the things that we know of and aren't changing. That's not right."

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One thing we always have to remember about football, regardless of what level we're talking, is that the violence of the sport will remain. No matter how much anyone at any level tries to make it safer, football will always be a tough, rough and violent sport where injuries of any kind are virtually inevitable.

With players only getting bigger, faster and stronger every year, the speed at which collisions are happening weren't meant for the human body to withstand for umpteen number of years.

That being said, taking away the violence of the game also takes away arguably its biggest appeal: hitting. Whether it's a tackle, a defender slamming into a receiver to break-up a pass or a blocker leveling a would-be tackler, the actual contact of the game is at the core of why football has become so popular.

Now, that does not mean the league should discontinue taking steps toward making the game safer. After all, what we must keep in mind is that life itself is much more important than a game of football.

Prior to Seau's unfortunate death, David Duerson who played in the pros from 1983-1993 committed suicide in 2011 and actually wrote that he wanted his brain examined. In an article by Alan Schwarz of the New York Times, Duerson's suicide message said:

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“Please, see that my brain is given to the N.F.L.’s brain bank.”

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Earlier in the article, it was also said that Duerson suffered from mental health issues caused by the game that contributed to his suicide:

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The suicide of the former Chicago Bears star Dave Duerson became more alarming Monday, when Boston University researchers announced that his brain had developed the same trauma-induced disease recently found in more than 20 deceased players.

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Former players have filed lawsuit against the NFL for head injuries, and that number simply continues to grow. And with the league trying to make the game safer, it does have to do a much better job at concerning itself with a player's health once retired; otherwise, what does the future of the game hold?

No one is going to actively pursue the game if the league won't take care of its former players. Competing in football (or any sport for that matter) is a small part of someone's life. And if that contributes to suicide, well, than families and friends are unfairly affected by the loss of a loved one.

Death is obviously inevitable, but preventing suicide is possible.

John Rozum on Twitter.