At last count there were around 70 related lawsuits filed by former NFL players against the league that includes over 2,100 people. The number of players joining the suit seems to grow every week. The lawsuit stems from the belief that the NFL knowingly concealed information from players regarding the negative effects of head trauma.
Warren Moon, Pro Football Hall of Famer, by all accounts is in good mental and physical shape in his post-career life; he says he would consider joining the lawsuit depending on future circumstances. He talked with 110SportsPodcast.com earlier this week about the concussion lawsuits being filed. “I would only consider it if I knew that some of my injuries where based from football and based that I was put on the field too quickly – that type of a thing. Some of these guys that are involved in this lawsuit feel that way. They feel like they had injuries and maybe they were put out there too quickly and those injures escalated and also made it to where they are right now suffering in their after career lives.
“We’ll just have to see how the lawsuit plays out. I’m going to look at it a little bit more closely. I have no problems right now with my health, it’s something I would definitely consider down the road if those different reasons came about.”
Moon also said that neither a former player or law firm has yet contacted him to join the suit. That may change soon though. Many law firms have become aggressive in their attempts to gain more clients. If you type “NFL concussion lawsuit” into Google, you are most likely going to see at least one paid advertisement for that search inquiry.
Furthermore, entering the lawsuit as a former player is nearly a no-lose type of situation. The law firm will absorb the cost to file the suit in hopes of a positive settlement, and so the players can really test this out risk free in hopes of gaining something financially from it as well.
When Moon was asked if most players were really in it because they believed the league concealed information on head trauma, he said, “I really think they do. I think there’s a lot of research being done. I think there’s validity to it, and I think the more information guys can find out about the things they experienced during their playing days that we didn’t know about back then I think is all the better.”
It should also be noted that Moon is working with a company called Xenith that has developed a helmet they believe can cut down on the number of concussions through an innovative design. The company’s founder is Vin Ferrara, who played quarterback at Harvard.
No one knows ultimately how the lawsuits against the NFL will settle out, but the discussion and debate on this topic can only be a good thing. Whether it be a new helmet or new rules, the game will be safer and better suited for the future because of this so called “concussion crisis.”
– For the full interview with Warren Moon listen to Episode 157 on 110SportsPodcast.com.
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110SportsPodcast.com features a weekly sports podcast and daily blogging. Episodes include interviews, entertainment, comedy, insight and analysis.
