Off Yankee topic: One of these days, pro football will get a true glimpse into the reality of concussions, and nothing will ever be the same

They'll never end concussions in pro football. Ever. They can ditch the kickoff. They can penalize players for helmet hits. They can coach differently. It won't matter. Football is hitting, and hitting is concussions.

And someday, the NFL will face a reckoning for what has happened to generations of players. It's not the league's fault. It's the game. Football is hitting, and hitting is concussions.

I'm saying this because, as you've probably heard, ex-Giant Tyler Sash just died at age 27. He died of brain complications from concussions - four known, plus thousands of jarring tackles that no doubt were sledge hammers to the head. You don't make the NFL by hiding out there. It caused brain damage - called C.T.E. - which left Sash hopeless and helpless. And dead.

Currently, doctors can only diagnose C.T.E in an autopsy. Thus, Tyler Sash's family learned too late what it surely suspected, too late to do any good.

One of these days, this will change. Somebody will build a brain-scanning machine that identifies C.T.E. in living people. That day, football - as we know it - will end.

Think of it. Every NCAA school will owe it to student athletes that they be tested once a year, or after every concussion. Remember, these are amateurs. You can't expect a kid to put his future mental well being on the line for next to nothing. If a young man shows any sign of C.T.E. - even a sure NFL first round pick - could the school morally allow him to play? Imagine the ramifications, legally, ethically, financially...

Folks, it's going to happen. Once they invent the C.T.E. machine, college football will see a turnover of talent unlike anything before it. Who wants to play for Northwestern, knowing the next hit might mean that 20 years from now, you won't remember how to drive home? And the NFL will see a huge change as well. How much is it worth to you, if you know you've got the beginnings of brain damage?

One of these days, the scanner will be invented. The NFL - and boxing - will get a full glimpse of the damage being done to its participants. And the players will, too. This will cause incredible disruption. Iceberg, dead ahead. The only downside is that it won't happen fast enough to save the Tyler Sashes.