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NFL Brain Injuries

December 31, 2011 by · Comments Off on NFL Brain Injuries 

NFL Brain InjuriesNFL Brain Injuries, Jaguars running back Maurice Jones-Drew wonders how much of the NFL’s concern about preventing and properly treating concussions has to do with lawsuits brought by former players against the league and its teams.

The NFL’s leading rusher spoke out about the issue again Wednesday, nearly a week after saying he would hide a possible head injury so he could stay in a game.

“I’ve had concussions before, and it wasn’t this big deal about concussions,” Jones-Drew said. “The only reason they’re making a big deal about concussions right now is because the league is getting sued over it. Before this, you never heard about it.”

At least eight lawsuits have been filed in recent months against the NFL by dozens of retired players who say they have medical problems related to brain injuries from their time in professional football.

Briefly: In a scoring change, the third of Tim Tebow’s four interceptions in the Broncos’ 40-14 loss to the Bills on Saturday is being ruled a lost fumble. … Linebacker Jason Taylor says he’ll retire after this season, his 15th in the NFL and his 13th with the Miami Dolphins. … Packers offensive lineman Evan Dietrich-Smith said Ndamukong Suh called him to apologize a few days after the Lions defensive lineman stomped on his arm Thanksgiving Day.

NFL Brain Injuries

December 22, 2011 by · Comments Off on NFL Brain Injuries 

NFL Brain InjuriesNFL Brain Injuries, Jamal Lewis, Dorsey Levens and two other former NFL players have sued the league over brain injuries that they say left them struggling with medical problems years after their playing days ended.

Lewis and Levens, along with Fulton Kuykendall and Ryan Stewart, filed the lawsuit against the National Football League and NFL Properties LLC this week in U.S. District Court in Atlanta.

The players maintain the NFL knew as early as the 1920s of the potential for concussions to harm its players but only went public last year.

“The NFL has done everything in its power to hide the issue and mislead players concerning the risks associated with concussions,” the players argue in the lawsuit.

“While athletes in other professional sports who had suffered concussions were being effectively `shut down’ for long periods of time or full seasons, NFL protocol was to return players who had suffered concussions to the very game in which the injury occurred,” the lawsuit states.

The NFL responded that it has long made player safety a priority and continues to do so.

“Any allegation that the NFL intentionally sought to mislead players has no merit,” the league said in a statement to The Associated Press on Thursday. “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.”

Each of the four ex-players had long careers in the NFL. Their lawsuit is one of about a half-dozen suits filed against the NFL in recent months by past players who say the league did not do enough to protect them from concussions.

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