by I'm With Stupid wrote:I suspect that it's actually more dangerous because of the padding. In boxing, the gloves actually make long-term head brain injuries more likely, because you're getting hit in the head for over 30 minutes. Before gloves, there were far fewer head shots, because there's a limit to how many times you can punch someone in the head without breaking your hand. For this reason, it wouldn't surprise me if MMA was actually less dangerous than boxing long-term (although actually getting knocked out in any sport is dangerous). If American football had no padding and no helmets, the rules would be changed to reflect this, but also the players simply wouldn't hit each other as hard, because there's just as much chance of you getting hurt yourself. You'd likely end up with more rugby-style tackling, where you have to be a bit more precise about how you take someone out.
That'd be my take too. Having played both American football - one season was enough for me - and rugby, the shoulder pads and helmets aren't so much there for your protection as to allow you to hit harder.
I'd think that there are other factors too. The stop start nature of the game means that everyone is usually running flat out when the ball is in play, where in rugby you've got to make your tackle, get up, get back onside and get ready to make another one without knowing when you're going to get a breather. Also, the offside rule in rugby tends to mean that you're usually aware of what direction a tackle is coming from; getting hit unexpectedly is much more common in American football, with quarterbacks being particularly vulnerable.
