Mark Duper, Ottis Anderson and 73 other former players sued the National Football League, claiming it concealed information about the danger of concussions for decades.
The negligence, fraud and liability suit was filed Tuesday in Los Angeles Superior Court. Many players’ wives also are plaintiffs.
The suit alleges the NFL knew as early as the 1920s of the harmful effects of concussions but concealed them from coaches, trainers, players and the public until June 2010. It also names helmet-maker Riddell, the NFL’s official helmet supplier.
It seeks unspecified damages.
“We have not seen the complaint but would vigorously contest any claims of this kind,” NFL spokesman Greg Aiello said in a statement.
Riddell spokeswoman Laura Moore said the company had not yet reviewed the complaint and its policy was to not comment on pending litigation.
The former players contend that they suffered repeated concussions from hits and tackles during their years in the NFL that caused brain damage. They contend the injuries left them with problems such as dementia, headaches, memory loss, blurred vision, sleeplessness and ringing in the ears. Some claim the injuries caused depression, anxiety, “explosive mood changes,” poor judgment and substance abuse.
According to the suit, the NFL knew for decades that multiple blows to the head can cause long-term brain injury but fraudulently denied it, even as independent evidence showed that players were at risk.
The Mild Traumatic Brain Injury Committee was established by the NFL in 1994 to study the risk of long-term brain injury to players. The suit contends that the committee published “false, distorted and deceiving” findings that the risk was minimal in order to deceive Congress, players and the public.
The NFL only warned active players in June 2010 of the risks associated with multiple concussions and Riddell failed to warn active players until around the same time, the suit claims.
The NFL has never warned past players, according to the suit.
OWNER’S WIFE DIES
Myra Kraft, the wife of New England Patriots owner Robert Kraft and a hard-working philanthropist dedicated to numerous causes, died Wednesday morning after a battle with cancer. She was 68.
“We are all heartbroken,” the Patriots said in a statement, adding that the philanthropic community has “suffered a great loss.”
Myra Hiatt Kraft was an active and powerful force in her family’s foundation and served on the boards of varied community and charitable organizations.
She managed the Robert and Myra Kraft Family Foundation and was president of the New England Patriots Charitable Foundation, which contributed millions of dollars to charities in the United States and Israel.
EXTRA POINTS
Former NFL quarterback Jim McMahon has been released from a Reno hospital after he was injured in a crash in a limousine on the way from Lake Tahoe to the airport. McMahon suffered torn ligaments in his foot and trauma to his head, neck and back when the limo swerved off the road and crashed through a barbed-wire fence into a drainage ditch. … Former Jets defensive tackle Kris Jenkins, who was released by New York in February, announced his retirement after his last two seasons were cut short by serious knee injuries. … The Browns hired former Cleveland tight end Aaron Shea as their director of player engagement. Shea, who played for the Browns from 2000-05, will help players transition into and out of the NFL by administering educational programs and services designed to guide them off the field.
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