Nawledge
Scout Team
In looking for variables that could be contributing to ACL injuries in the NFL, many experts and analysts have pointed to aspects of the collective bargaining agreement (CBA) between the league and players, the signing of which in August 2011 ended that year’s player lockout.
The new CBA mandates a significant decrease in the length of the offseason training program, number of “organized team activities” (offseason training sessions), and number of full-contact practices. In addition, the CBA limits players’ access to team training facilities and medical personnel during the offseason.
The new rules, perhaps ironically, are designed to protect players—the reduced physical contact is intended to decrease the risk of concussion, and the reduced training volume is intended to decrease the risk of overuse injury and general wear and tear. But some believe the limitations may have unintended consequences when it comes to risk of ACL injuries.
Tim Hewett, PhD, director of the Ohio State University Health and Performance Institute in Columbus, noted that the ACL injury patterns in the NFL this season are reminiscent of the increase in ACL injuries seen after the 2011 National Basketball Association lockout and the increase in Achilles injuries that occurred after the 2011 NFL lockout (see “Lockout lessons: NFL Achilles injuries spark debate,” November 2011, page 15). Athletes had no access to team training facilities during both lockouts, so it makes sense that the training restrictions for NFL players mandated by the CBA would have a similar effect, he said.
“This number of ACL injuries in the preseason is way beyond what you’d normally expect, and now there have been three instances of what appear to be significant anomalies in injury patterns. When you put the three together, you may have something real,” Hewett said. “There is extremely strong evidence now showing we can reduce the risk of noncontact ACL injuries through training. Could we make the leap to say in the absence of that kind of training the injury rate would go up? I think logically we could say that.”
Whereas altered training practices may have contributed to rates of noncontact ACL injury, a change in the on-field rules—again, intended to protect players from concussion—may be inadvertently increasing the risk of ACL injuries resulting from contact between players. A 2010 rule established fines for tackles targeting an opponent’s head or neck under certain situations. But some defensive players, in an effort to avoid such infringements, have compensated by focusing their tackles on their opponent’s legs, in turn putting the knees at risk.
Both Bramel and Hewett suggested that newer-generation artificial playing surfaces may also be contributing to ACL injury in NFL players, citing a 2012 study conducted by the league’s Injury and Safety Panel that found a 67% higher rate of ACL sprains on artificial turf than on grass (see “Artificial surfaces evolve, but safety debate persists,” May 2013, page 57). An ACL sprain may be less severe than a tear, but the mechanism of injury is essentially the same, Hewett said.
http://lermagazine.com/news/in-the-...acl-issue-experts-debate-contributing-factors
This article is from 2013...i decided to look for it because of the insane amount of these injuries that have been happening over the last few years. I know its football and injuries are inevitable but it seems like people are tearing acls every week. Alot of them are non contact related as well. Stars are dropping like flies to these injuries. It is definately more common it seems like for these injuries to occur over the past few years than ever before. I thought this was an interesting article on the topic and thought id post it up for ya guys. Losing wake was devastating for us, then today leveon bell tears his acl...forte could possibly have tore his. Its really crazy how many acl/mcl and achilles tears are happening.