Yep, and we're all guilty of this @mtangelsfan. The thing is this: I don't think that we're having discussions about this on the scale that we should be because people are legitimately afraid to have them. I know that "afraid" is a strange/touchy-feely word to use, but I think it's appropriate. We're afraid due to two reasons, IMO: 1) deep analysis will ultimately reveal that we're all complicit to a degree in the things that happen to these people via our desire to watch these sports (particularly football), and 2) we realize that if we approach this honestly we may lose this sport that we love so much.
As to the notion that we can continue to tell ourselves that the participants want to do this and understand the risks: I felt that way, but given new research, it's not something that I think people can continue to do. New research shows that allowing kids to play tackle football before the age of 12 places them at significantly increased risk for behavioral/emotional issues later down the line:
http://www.wbur.org/hereandnow/2017/09/19/youth-football-concussions
As such, it's not like smokers, because in our culture if a person were to allow their kid to smoke, they'd rightly be considered a monster in doing so. However, especially around where I live in Texas, letting your little kid play tackle football is perfectly ok for most, although there is certainly a growing contingent of people that think otherwise. We're going to have a major culture shift in regard to this. Then, once the kids get older than 12, they get larger and they are exposing themselves to the risk of CTE.
These NCAA and NFL players come from somewhere, and most of them are playing football as kids, and with their parents willingly participating. For every 1 dude that makes the NFL, there are tons of others that got their heads bashed in a million times that aren't even going to reap the rewards that the NFL dudes get.
Exactly.
I think there's far more to it. This isn't just about the NFL, this is about football in general. Perhaps changes at the NFL level can filter down. They'll have to. I think we'll see lawsuits at almost every level eventually, down to school districts getting sued. Money is going to initially drive the change, if it happens.