Boxing was once hugely popular and now irrelevant but for other reasons besides injuries and violence. Same concerns could have been said about that.

Would people still watch boxing and UFC if head punching were against the rules for safety's sake? Head blows are basically the point of both, particularly boxing, and not an accidental feature like football, and yet their rules remain unchanged.

Football was only singled out because of its success and growing audience, which now includes more women who find the big hits objectionable. No one is hoping for brain injuries, but trying to police them in this ham-handed arbitrary fashion is ruining the game and shrinking their audience. I include myself in this category as I rarely go out of my way to watch any games anymore for this reason among others.