On Thursday, the Boston University CTE Center released its findings on Aaron Hernandez, a former NFL player turned killer who had advanced CTE in his brain.
The National Football League has had a huge issue with concussions and the discovery of CTE over the past 15 years. It now has another one with the news that former New England Patriots tight end Aaron Hernandez was found to have severe CTE upon his suicide in prison.
Hernandez, who was found dead in his cell on April 19, 2017 as a result of strangulation, played three seasons in the NFL before standing trial in the murder of Odin Lloyd. The Connecticut native was found guilty of first-degree murder, putting him in prison for life.
According to Jose Baez, an attorney who is representing the Hernandez family in an upcoming lawsuit against both the Patriots and NFL, believes Hernandez’s Stage 3 CTE diagnosis is evidence of a larger problem stemming from brain injuries in the sport.
Per Baez, Boston University’s study found that Hernandez, 27 years old at death, had the most advanced case of CTE that they’ve studied. The question is whether the NFL can be held responsible for the CTE findings, considering Hernandez also played high school football in Connecticut before taking on a starring role with the University of Florida.
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In Gainesville, Hernandez played three seasons and two as a starter. In the NFL, Hernandez appeared in 44 regular and postseason contests.
This is not the first time that a former NFL player has either been found guilty of or suspected of murder, and later found with CTE. Former Kansas City Chiefs inside linebacker Jovan Belcher admitted to murdering his girlfriend, also the mother of his child, before killing himself in the Arrowhead Stadium parking lot back in Nov. 2012. Belcher was 25 years old.