BleacherCoaches.com

This is just one biased perspective on the way the NHL franchises and NFL franchises handle concussed players; but doesn't it seem that the way the Penguins and Sidney Crosby are handling his "mild" concussion stark in comparison to how fast it seems NFL players can come back from much worse head injuries?

Crosby, who hasn't, to my knowledge had any head trauma prior to this year, has been out since January 5th or so with what was initially described as a mild concussion. Meanwhile in the NFL you have guys that are literally beating their brains out week in and week out, sustain concussions, and can somehow recover in 6 days to play again.

Both leagues have cracked down on headshots. Both leagues seem to take concussions seriously. One league still seems to have professional athletes 'recover' faster than the others in the wake of concussions.

I just wanna see what you guys have to say. It's kind of alarming to me that nobody else has been talking about this in depth with the national media; at the same time it's no surprise at all, you don't wanna bash your darling NFL and how they're 'cracking down on headshots' all the while the little NHL seems to be taking the proper precautions when it comes to players who sustain such injuries.

Good thoughts, and you're absolutely right. I'd say headshots are more prevalent in the NFL, and yet players are back the next week, and are going to sustain more and more headshots. To my knowledge as well, that Crosby has never had any of these problems, but I've heard he has a neck injury to go with the concussion. Not sure if thats the truth or speculation, but it seems that this is abnormally long for a concussion recovery. Whether or not the NFL rushes players back or not, this seems to be more serious than your average concussion. Just my opinion, I wonder the true reasoning for keeping him out this long.

Yeah you gotta wonder why the difference between recovery times for these injuries. Lets not forget that Savard of the Bruins is out for the year with a concussion and it looks like it will be at least 2 or 3 more weeks until Tangardi or Asham return from their "mild" concussions as well, so Crosby isn't the only one. I think the reality of it is the NHL season is 82 games and spans over about 8 months. The NFL season is 16 games and about 5 months, so missing 3 weeks is a lot different in the two sports. At the same time, 16 of the 30 NHL teams get into the playoffs compared to 12 of the 32 in the NFL. If the Penguins were in 9th place and fighting for the last playoff spot, would they be getting these guys back a little fast, I don't know. If Aaron Rodgers missed one more week with his second concussion this season the Packers would have missed the playoffs. This is a great topic and my friend is in the beginning process of writing a literature review on this topic, so I am looking forward to see what he can dig up. Another issue is the speed of hockey. These players are moving around a lot faster than NHL players, have pucks flying through the air, and are doing it with a lot less head gear.