Concussion lawsuits mount against NFL despite player support
But additional obstacles may favor NFL
Even with a proposed settlement of $765 million under consideration, lawsuits over concussion-related symptoms against the National Football League continue to be filed. On Monday, Hall of Fame running back Gale Sayers and four other retired players filed suit in U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania, Nathan Fenno of The Washington Times reported:
According to the lawsuit, Sayers suffers from “loss of memory, dementia, Alzheimer’s, neurological disorder, depression, sleep problems and irritability.”
The case ups the number of former players suing the NFL to 4,887 over 307 lawsuits, according to a count by The Times.
The settlement would potentially cover more than 18,000 former NFL players, according to Sam Farmer of The Los Angeles Times.
The New York Times has reported that the situation may be tilted in the NFL’s favor for at least two reasons. Players who vote for the settlement and those who are n0n-committal will be considered as favoring it, and those who opt out of the settlement will face additional uphill battles.
Even if the players succeed in having their cases heard, they will have to prove that the N.F.L. deliberately hid information from them and that the concussions they received in the N.F.L., as opposed to those from their high school or college playing days, led to their current ailments.
And some players who may not be satisfied by the NFL offer may be may be swayed to approve it in light of the more negative prospects that might ensue from continued litigation, including the additional time frame and potentially smaller settlement, the Times also reported.
They may recognize that returning to court would be time-consuming and expensive and might yield a smaller settlement, if any.
Former Buffalo Bills defensive back Jeff Nixon, who played from 1979-82, told the Times he would accept the deal to close out the struggle.
“This may not be the best settlement we could have hoped for, but if the agreement is approved by the judge, I will not take the chance of opting out and fighting another 5 or 10 years — especially when the outcome is so uncertain,” he wrote in a letter to other retired players. “I will not stand in the way of this settlement because, first and foremost, it will be the fastest way to compensate the men — and their families — that are most severely affected by the brain injuries they have sustained.”
