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
© 2012 Cable News Network. Turner Broadcasting System, Inc. All Rights Reserved.
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LAME!! This is just another example of the pussification of America! Pretty soon it will be like the movie Demolition Man...anything that is deemed 'bad" for you will be illegal. By the time my son is in high school, even flag football will be banned because of the potential danger of someone hurting their hands. This is not the NFL's fault or the teams. Each player assumes the risk when they play any contact sports and for these guys, I'm sure they can afford good doctors......the pussification of America people!!!!!
I hope they all win and I hope foozball get's banned!
Wow, whoever would have guessed that a couple of 250 pound men, running at full speed into each other then being piled on by a dozen more, might have some chance of physicla injury?
Amazing and the sport has only been played for 125 years or so with a long list of deaths and injuries al the way back.
Unless the NFL held their children as hostages to force them to play for their multi-million dollar/year salaries, I fail to see what their problem is.
put a skirt on them all. bunch of nancy boys!!
JOhn, the players that played in the 80s, 70s, and 60s did not get paid millions of dollars, in fact many of them did not get paid over 50K to play football in the NFL, so please do some research before speaking.
So, Johnnyboy, would making only 50K a year make a person more likely or less likely to take the known risks. That was the point here the risks are/were known by the amount of money has nothing to do with it.
Ah yes, the contingency lawyers are salivating over their multimillion dollar cut of this pie. Players lose, league loses, lawyers win super jumbo.
Football is a rough sport. When a young man enters the football league he knows it is a rough sport. He knows what could happen when playing the game. Injurys happen in college football and that should be a warning that there are possible injurys. The players are larger and the game is much rougher than college. Every thing has been done to protect the player but accidents do happen. My heart goes out to every player who goes into professional foot ball player. IT IS A ROUGH SPORT.
This is crazy! These aren't people who just one day decided to play football. These people have played since they were children. Are they going to sue their schools or their parents for letting them play in the first place?
Maybe.
About time. Kill NFL in court
HAHAHAHAHAAHHA! What a rakkket!
They already got their millions. I call frivolous.
The sad part is that even if the NFL notified all players of the dangers of playing football, the money was so good that they would have played it anyway, all of them. It doesn't take a genius to know that you can get hurt playing football. Sure, a long time ago the money was a lot less, but so were the paychecks of everyone not playing professional sports. After this lawsuit, anyone wanting to play football will need to sign a waiver, and also be limited to two concussions then forced to retire.
It is sad, but Rays wife surely wasn't complaining when her husband was getting hit and collecting millions. Every athelete knows the risk of what they DECIDE to do.
Who's interested in a class action against 7-11 for the dreaded brain freeze due to Slurpee consumption?
While I am sympathic to the playes injuries.. Playing this "sport" is about free will!! No one forced these men to play the game.. It was their choice.. They toook the MONEY OFFERED AND NOW THEY CRY FOUL..I can not support these players unless they can prove they were misled into playing the game while the NFL knew they would suffer injuries long term!! That will be hard to prove since each player had a choice to not sign on. At the end of the day .. every man has a right to choose and these players made their choice that may have led to life long issues..Not the NFL responsiblity