[Chris] Collinsworth has become football’s most prominent critic of illegal tackling by drawing on more than just his intelligence, which is roundly praised, or his experience as an often-defenseless receiver, which is roundly surmised. Rather, with one son breaking wedges for Notre Dame and another in high school ball, and as a longtime Kentucky youth coach, Collinsworth communicates parental impatience regarding the N.F.L.’s self-proclaimed culture change.
“This is a league that we’ve always celebrated the biggest hits and the bone-jarring blows, but you can’t hide from the evidence anymore,” Collinsworth, in a telephone interview, said regarding the short- and long-term effects of football head trauma. “We’re talking about the very essence of the game. I’d be less than honest if I said I didn’t have my doubts as to whether my children should be playing football.”