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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On a related note 2 Million firefighters sue their municipalities because no one told them that running into a burning building to save lives was dangerous.
Really? And none of these 2000 players knew that there would be a risk before signing their lucrative contracts? Puh-leese!
Your talking about the league now with the lucrative contracts, back then they weren't paid mega dollars. And the gear wasn't that protective either.
and yet...there are some morons who says soccer is a woman's game....pathetic.
Serious, what did you think was going to happen after hurling your body at other people at max speed! I have already given up on steriod infused baseball, do not make me even consider giving up on football. Go Giants!
phoouy Giants!, Go Skins!
Playing midgets I was injured a lot and still carry some of the aftermaths like a sublimating shoulder that needed surgery to correct in my 20s. When I was headed toward Jr. HIgh and looked at the size of the linemen I knew more injury was on the way so I switched to Soccer. I never received an injury from Soccer that I carry today at 56. That is why I did not allow my sons to play football nor do I support the game in any way. But for these players to say they didn't know the risk just doesn't sit well with me when I recognized the risk when I was 12.
And then there were the wimps.
Sorry, you chose a career that involves hitting and being hit. What next boxers suing for head injuries?
Really? This is assumable risk. If there were no chance of head injury why would they make you wear a helmet in the first place. You got paid well to perform a dangerous job. Go live in retirement at 36 and let it go.
Seems to me that the NFL has already paid millions to these players to play the game which means be hit in the head. The players know they were going to be hit and they know it is good television to get hit which means additional money in their pocket in promotions. Maybe sue the manufactures of the helmets for not making sure that their product protects these things from happening.
I say shut down the NFL because of fear of lawsuits? Don't think so. Do these people really think playing a contact sport as violent as the NFL would be good for them? Give me a break. Things like this waste government money and resources. Are rock bands going to start suing someone because their hearing is bad now? Are park rangers going to sue if they get scared by a bear? Give me a break. Nobody made them play.
Of course there are tons of stupid comments.......the point of the lawsuit is that the NFL did not provide ALL the info regarding potential injuries and the extent of them so they can make an informed decision about taking the risks........typical modern America mentality........blame the little guy, thats why America is on its way to being the a new third world country.........you idiots.
So you're saying the NFL should be responsible for telling the players they can get injured playing and providing a list to these players that explains each and every possible injury they could get while playing the sport? I'm sorry, but these are grown men that chose to play this sport, have probably played it since high school, they should be smart enough to realize that getting hit over and over every week for years by something that is 200 plus pounds is going to cause some type of injury.
so your saying the NFL is responsible for the players not understanding what their doctor was saying when they were diagnosed with a concussion?
so the owners from the 70s, 80s & most of the 90s should be accountable because the technology now used to determine the severity of brain injuries was not invented yet? while the junior seau & greg easterling stories make for great fluff pieces that can easily manipulate people into making generalizations about his issue, the facts show that the suicide rate for former nfl players is lower than that of the general public. i had 2 concussions while wrestling in high school back in the mid 1990s. these were disgnosed by doctors & even included 1 scan. the physical limitations given by the doctors at that time are nowhere near as extreme as the general practice concussion protocols are today. should i go back & sue my doctors now?
All these players have already been fully compensated for the risks inherent in playing football, by way of their high salaries and lucrative contract perks.
This suit is frivolous, petty, and ridiculous.
I learned in the 5th grade that if you hit your head on things it will hurt your brain. Maybe these Jocks are a bunch of idiots. The NFL shouldn't be responsible for anything they gave them the opportunity to make millions of money. CMON players quit being a bunch of babies.
Ok, I'm just really confused. I'm going to ignore older people who are now complaining about memory loss. A vast majority of elderly people suffer some form of memory loss. I digress. Football is a contact sport right? Aren't you getting what you get paid for? You are paid to hit and get hit. It's like boxers suing the WBA for cauliflower ear. More should be put into health programs for football players, but a lawsuit is a joke
Don't ram your head into hard objects or you could get brain damage. There NFL players you've been warned.
Stupid lawsuit.