When athletes in the NFL play football on Thursday night, they have had more chance to rest since their most recent game and end up becoming less likely to sustain an injury.
In a new study in the “Orthopedic Journal of Sports Medicine”, researchers analyzed all documented cases of injuries in NFL players from 2013 – 2016. Approximately 1.53 injuries occurred during every Sunday match. On Thursdays, when football players had more time to rest between matches, athletes averaged only 1.26 injuries per match.
Conclusions
Athletes who perform in a fatigued state may develop an increased susceptibility to sustaining injury.
References
Perez, J. R., Burke, J., Zalikha, A., Schiller, N., Buskard, A. N., Damodar, D., … & Baraga, M. G. (2019). Does Short Rest with Thursday Night Games Influence Injury Rates in the NFL?. Orthopaedic Journal of Sports Medicine, 7(7_suppl5), 2325967119S00341.