As Super Bowl Fever Mounts Ten Former Players Face A Fight To Claim Compensation

Players are pursuing compensation against the NFL

Eleven days before the Super Bowl the attention of the American Football community will turn to a court room in Miami. A panel of judges will decide if at least ten individual and class-action lawsuits brought by former NFL players should be combined into one all-encompassing case.

The players’ complaints all stem from the fact that the repeated head trauma, experienced during games and practice, caused them to suffer disabilities after they had retired. The negligence alleges that the NFL knew of the potential dangers but did little to protect the safety of the players.

Retired players are claiming that the trauma they received while playing the sport has caused memory loss, migraines and depression that has even led to suicide.

In February 2011, successful businessman and former Chicago Bears safety, Dave Duerson, shot himself in the chest at the age of 50. In his suicide note he told his family to ‘please see that my brain is given to the NFL’s brain bank’.

His family fulfilled his wish and it was revealed that he had suffered from chronic traumatic encephalopathy, a degenerative disease of the brain that had been caused by repeated head trauma.

Former NFL Players To Claim Compensation: Tough Safety Regulations Only Introduced In 2007

Until relatively recently the NFL let individual teams decide when a concussed player was fit to return to action. Only since 2007 have more stringent rules been in place barring woozy players from playing until a doctor had deemed that they have completely recovered from any injury. The NFL has now placed an independent advisor on the side lines to ensure that players aren’t rushed back prematurely during a game.

Stephen Rosenthal, an attorney for Miami law firm Podhurst Orseck, is representing players in a separate class-action lawsuit that is seeking funding for neurological exams to detect possible brain damage in former players. He commented:

“There’s enough evidence already made public to say that the NFL engaged in misconduct.The question is, how much will a jury value the NFL’s treatment of these guys as cannon fodder?”

Former NFL Players To Claim Compensation: League Believes Case ‘Has No Merit’

Comments from Greg Aiello, an NFL spokesman, indicate that the league intends to fight all allegations from players looking to claim compensation. “The NFL has long made player safety a priority and continues to do so.” He said.

“Any allegations that the NFL intentionally sought to mislead players has no merit. It stands in contrast to the league’s actions to better protect players and advance the science and medical understanding of the management and treatment of concussions.”

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If you would like to claim compensation or have any questions about any aspect of personal injury compensation speak to a personal injury solicitor at Duncan Gibbins on freephone 0800 0193 515 .