A unified lawsuit on behalf of more than 2,000 National Football League players has been filed against the league in federal court, alleging that the NFL failed to acknowledge and address neurological risks associated with the sport and then deliberately failed to tell players about the risks they faced, according to attorneys representing former players.
The complaint, filed in federal court in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, unites the more than 80 pending lawsuits filed against the NFL.
“I firmly believe the NFL could have and should have done more to protect Ray. That’s why I am seeking to hold the NFL accountable,” Mary Ann Easterling, widow of former Atlanta Falcons safety Ray Easterling, who committed suicide in April after suffering for years from dementia, said in a press release. “Having lived through Ray’s struggle, I desperately hope and pray others can be spared the pain and suffering we have endured – and still endure every day.”
NFL spokesman Brian McCarthy acknowledged the filing, but added that there was nothing new to the claim other than that it merges them all in one place.
"Our legal team will review today's filing that is intended to consolidate plaintiffs' existing claims into one "master" complaint," he said. "The NFL has long made player safety a priority and continues to do so. Any allegation that the NFL sought to mislead players has no merit. It stands in contrast to the league's many actions to better protect players and advance the science and medical understanding of the management and treatment of concussions."
However, many NFL players have claimed they suffer from a variety of injuries because of concussions without really knowing the severity of how badly they could be hurt playing the game.
“The NFL must open its eyes to the consequences of its actions,” Kevin Turner, a former running back for the New England Patriots and Philadelphia Eagles who has been diagnosed with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, said in a press release. “The NFL has the power not only to give former players the care they deserve, but also to ensure that future generations of football players do not suffer the way that many in my generation have.”
Lawyers representing the NFL players cited "dementia, depression, reduced cognitive ability, sleeplessness, early-onset Alzheimer’s, and a debilitating and latent disease known as chronic traumatic encephalopathy" as some of the specific injuries caused by head trauma in the NFL.
“Instead of protecting the health of its players, the NFL’s response to this epidemic of brain injuries was to engage in a campaign of deceit and deception, actively concealing the risks players faced from repetitive impacts,” Christopher Seeger and Sol Weiss, co-lead counsels for the former NFL players, said in a press release. “This case is about providing security and care to former NFL players who have suffered these devastating neurologic injuries, and making the game safer for generations to come.”
Read more about the NFL's concussion problem:
NFL to require sideline test after head blows
Former NFL players: League concealed concussion risks
Film aims to show football's culture of playing despite concussions
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Only in America can someone get paid millions of dollars for what amounts to manual labor and then complain/cry/sue over it.
While I do have sympathy for the plight of those who suffer from the effects of head trauma long after they retire, are you actually trying to make us believe that simple COMMON SENSE didn't tell you that high-speed collisions involving the head COULD be detrimental to your health, and that only the NFL could definitively tell you that?
In the words of John Stossel: Gimme a break!!!!
What a crock of you know what...these players knew all too well what they were getting themselves into when playing this sport. If you didn't want to mess up your brain then get a desk job like me. Ridiculous!
Ray ain't comin home. The gears are turning but no one's behind the wheel.
should've chosen to use their heads as something besides batterimg rams...their own fault
Do football players expect not to get hit in the head during a contact sport they choose to play and make millions doing so. Just asking
How are you going to spend those millions if you no longer have your mind or even your life?
a further 200 former players asked what day it was and 30 more said 'oooh pretty flower' when shown a stop sign.
You men are adults and make the educated decision to play ball. You know the risks of the game, yet the millions of dollars that you can make is much more important than your health. I'd say all 2,000 of you are a bit sue happy and need a wake up call. Quit blaming everybody and everything for your wrong decisions.
ksheets, they didn't, the research into brain injuries did not become vougue until the 1990s and even with that the NFL paid doctors and scientists to say that the injuries had nothing to do with playing football. The NFL lied and hid that information. But you want to think that they knew this stuff all along which is not true.
Thats the thing ksheets, they did NOT know the risk. The claim is all about the NFL hiding the risks so they couldn't know them...
Andrey, why are you guys assuming that they made millions of dollars, before the 1990s the average NFL player did not make that much money. In the 70s they made 23K a season, in the 60s it was 9K, in the 80s it was 90K. So, I think that either most of you guys are very young <30 or don't read.
Johnny, ya beter look again, the average NFL player in the 60's was making 23,000, in the 70's it rose to 35,000 (First multi million dollar players appeared early 70's), by the 80's player average salary exceeded 200,000 (contract specified league minimum), after the strike year of 1984 player minimum jumped to over 300,000.
Yes! We should not assume they all made millions, but we can safely assume that if you bang your head repeatedly against another head, then you should know its not good for you and you should stop.
That is the problem with the American football, you go head first compared to the European rugby, you do not.
NFL concealed information? Really? Did the NFL discover something on their own that the rest of the medical community didn't have? I don't think so. There is a group whose sole purpose is to protect the players. It is currently called the NFLPA. They had access to the same information the league did.
These players, will do everything in their power, to play. Teams have had to hide players helmets to keep them from going back on the field and sometimes that didnt' even work. When hurt and told what they don't want to hear, they will go get as many 2nd opinions as they need to get the answer they want.
Another example of Personal Responsibility being ignored.
I think this is silly. These men knew what they were signing up for when they were paid HANDSOMELY for their NFL careers. I don't think the NFL should be forced to pay more money to these people for injuries.
American-style football needs to be banned. By its very design there is no way to make it safe. Of course, TV networks are making billions of dollars, so what are the chances?
Actually, there are much better helmets which will protect the brain more than current models. Players don't like them because these models are more bulky.
Banned why American Football? Why not hockey, boxing, MMA and baseball. People will play sports for the thrill of it and people will apy to see the brutality.
i agree that it cannot be made safe. i disagree that it should be banned.
i think that by the time they get to that level they see it as a job
It is too bad for those who have experienced head trauma – but suing the NFL for not warning them of the potential consequences of playing? Doesn't seem right to me.
Crybabies! No complaints about the multi-million dollar salaries. If they wanted to be safe, play chess.
most of them do not have multi-million dollar salaries
No one forced you to play in the NFL. You signed a contract to play. By signing that contract you agreed to play the game. You cant hold the NFL accountable for your head injuries. Would you sue another player that hit you and caused the concussion? The NFL didnt cause the concussion. Your fellow players did........