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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This is total BS. There is inherent risk to all sports and all activities the moment you are born. At some point people need to accept responsiblity for their actions. It's not rocket science to figure out that when 2 people collide that there could be some harm done.
These guys all probably started playing football when they were 5 years old. Played all the way through highschool. Played 4 years in college. A total of almost 20 years non professional play. Then after all that they play an average of 3 years in the NFL. After almost 20 years of non professional play they show up in the NFL and they don't know it's dangerous?! And the NFL is now liable for all the head trauma they've suffered their entire life.
Do they think we all feel sorry for them some how?
@sid. You got that backwards. It is by choice that US adults avoid the live giving rays of the sun. Example: observe the pastey white skin covered with cottage cheese on the backs of the legs of the fat ladies walking-down Wal-marts dairy isle. They all wear dark sunglasses for eye protection w/o risk of ever tanning.
As a mother of a young son, I have had numerous conversations with friends regarding head trauma and football. There is a growing trend that parents with young children do not want their kids playing football and in fact go out of their way to discourage the notion from a very early age. These huge high school football stadiums will be a thing of the past in 10 or 20 years as other, safer sports become the focus.
Larry M, exactly Larry exactly, folks are still thinking that these guys were millionaires that wasted their money on expensive cars and women. Before 1980 guys go paid less than 50K a year to play football and the NFL told them that they would not have to worry about lifetime injuries after they finished.
Sigh.... What ever happened to assumption of risk. These people are more than compensated. If you wanted a safer profession ,you could have focused on your studies more.
Oh my gosh! You mean that football can cause head injuries? These people are either too slow to understand what happens or are actually trying to get some more cash. What a joke....
How do you determine the your problems aren't from college or high school or for that matter prove it, are you able to separate the two?
It doesn't matter. The league includes high school football.
Just cancel this ridiculous sport already! So over hyped, so little actual gameplay (60 minutes in a game that takes 4 hours) – football is not a sport, its a business and nothing else.
I agree it isn't a game, its all money from fans that think it is a sport
What a bunch of dame bramridge people.
Average salary for an NFL player per decade for all you folks who believe the retired players got paid millions of dollars.
Ave salary in the 1950s: 6K
Ave Salary in the 1960s: 9K
Ave Salary in the 1970s: 23K
Ave Salary in the 1980s: 90K
And so on, only until the strikes of 1982 and 1987 did you start to see guys make millions of dollars.
Compared to the time, they still made good money. And anyone dumb enough to think slamming into people full speed would not be perminatly harmful, deserves the brain damage. Jocks are bullies from elementary thru collage, and deserve no sympathy
The starting wage today is 310,000 and has been this high for at least 5-10 yrs. i think your numbers are way off
Very good point. Most people commenting here don't understand that not ever guy that ever played in the NFL is a millionaire. Even the guys that make a couple million do it over just a few years. Their primary earning years are from age 22 – 27. A mediocre NFL player probably makes about $4 million (after taxes) in that span if he's lucky. That sounds like a lot, but where does he go from there, especially considering what shape his mind and body may be in?
Compare that to a regular guy that makes $50k a year after tax but works for 40 years. That's $2 million. Not as far off from the NFL player as people think. These former players may be better off financially than the rest of us, but it's not like they're all filthy rich. Not even close.
this is such a farce!! Like they didn't know that repeatedly banging your head wouldn't cause injury??? And excuse me, but with the amount of money they make, I think they already got their "hazard pay" and then some!!!!
Your not well informed
This is about guys who got paid nothing when they were playing that are now stuck with terrible brain disorders as a result of playing for peanuts in the 60s 70s and 80s. They paved the way for the guys who are making millions today but are broke, have no health insurance, and are in horrible condition as a result of their playing days.
suing??? for what, every one knows the game is dangerous, you bash your head expect damage, better yet abandon the game..
Ok players, you win. You win the suit. So the next time you get hit hard and have trouble getting up, we will take you out of the game for a minimum of the rest of the season. The first time you show signs of any trauma whatsoever, you are pulled for the rest of the season. Be careful asking for what you want, because you are about to get it. So get ready to sit out the season for a simple hit. You have just started the end of a lot of your careers.