The NFL concussion agreement saw 220 parties, mostly former players, opt out of the class-action settlement, preserving their ability to sue the NFL for their injuries individually.
More than 200 former NFL players or their families chose to opt out of a proposed settlement of concussion injury claims against the league, meaning they can still attempt to sue the NFL individually, and not take part of the $765-million-dollar settlement.
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It seems like a lot of money to be passing up, but there were approximately 33,964 players or relatives of deceased players contacted as part of the agreement. The restrictions against who can collect seem to be pretty strict. The policy only covers retired players (current players are out of luck) and only retired players who develop Lou Gehrig’s disease, dementia or other neurological problems as a result of concussions from their playing careers. Brain trauma experts have criticized the agreement because it doesn’t address mood swings, aggressiveness or behavioral problems associated with concussions.
“With over 99 percent participation, it is clear the retired player community resoundingly supports this settlement,” lead plaintiffs’ attorneys Christopher Seeger and Sol Weiss said in a statement. “Over the last several months, we have heard from countless retired players who are in dire need of these benefits, as well as those who take comfort in the long-term protections the settlement provides.”
Take the statement from the attorneys with a gain of salt; it’s not chump change, but it’s also probably going to be much harder for the 220 parties that opted out to take on the NFL and their lawyers on their own; taking the settlement was probably the only way some of these former players were going to see a dime from the league, even if they aren’t seeing too many dollars overall.
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