Why Was Jahvid Best Even Playing Against OSU with a Slight Concussion?

We’ve already posted about the crazy fall and concussion Jahvid Best sustained against Oregon State on Saturday and we’re glad to hear he’s been released from the hospital. The injury comes at a curious time where the NFL was forced to answer to alarming studies that reveal the severity of concussions in governmental hearings. Much of the data suggests concussions impair people later on in life and that there is a greater susceptibility to a second concussion if there hasn’t been enough healing time following the first. After reading that, it makes sense that Best looked so knocked out after his fall (dropping from five-six feet in the air doesn’t help either).

The severity of the concussion raising the most critical question: why was Best even playing in the game? I asked the same question when Tate Forcier played against Delaware State despite suffering a mild concussion against Iowa the prior week, and why Tim Tebow was playing against LSU two weeks after suffering a concussion against Kentucky. Yesterday alone, we saw Eagles running back Brian Westbrook sit out against the Cowboys because he was still having headaches from his concussion suffered two Monday nights prior against the Redskins. The bottom line is that long-term health matters more than the short term desire to win one game. If a young player like Best suffered a concussion in one game, he shouldn’t have been playing the very next week. Just because players used to tough things out back in the day doesn’t mean it was the smartest thing to do. We constantly pride ourselves on our ability to learn, discover, evolve, and improve. If new data overwhelmingly proves the link between concussions and brain injury, we shouldn’t be resistant; we should change for the better. I think Cal learned its lesson.