Bradshaw Paying Price For Concussions In NFL
PITTSBURGH (KDKA) -- Back when Super Bowl victories were celebrated in Market Square and the Terrible Trolley took you from South Hills Junction to town with music all the way, Terry Bradshaw was at the top of his game.
Today, though, he's paying the price.
"I felt as though my short term memory had just gone to pot and I couldn't understand what was going on," Bradshaw said.
"One of the questions obviously is, 'How many clear cut concussions have you had?'
"And I'm trying to think, you know, 'Clear cut, totally KO'ed my entire career?' I could name six – six that I, you know, could remember," he said.
Short-term memory loss and loss of hand-to-eye coordination is not unusual for players of his era.
"Back then, the helmets weren't as good, the rules weren't as tight," Dr. Jack Wilberger, a neurosurgeon at Allegheny General Hospital, said.
But he says increased attention to the issue now could save a younger generation.
"It used to be you'd sit in the office and tell the athlete, 'We don't think you should be playing,' and the parents would argue with you," Dr. Wilberger said. "And we don't see that as much anymore. The parents realizing the fact that their child's brain is more important than the next football game."
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