NFL, CTE Latest Rumors: Three Former Raiders Players Pledge Brain for Research
A group of former NFL players are handing out a significant contribution for the sake of the game and in honor of Ken Stabler, a former player who died last year after battling with colon cancer. The contribution is focused on the scientific community's extensive study on CTE, hoping to shed some light on the link of the degenerative brain disease and brain trauma in full contact sports, particularly American football.
George Atkinson, George Buehler, and Art Thoms are retired Oakland Raiders players who decided to donate their brains for the research and they're doing it for the sake of Stabler, who after his death, was diagnosed to have been suffering from Stage 3 CTE. The brain donations will be delivered to the Concussion Legacy Foundation, one of the few in the country that gives full time research on the causes of the brain diseases.
The alleged connection between CTE and brain trauma in players has taken the spotlight in recent years after several retired NFL players who committed suicide were found to have suffered from it. As a result, speculations started to surface, with many medical professionals and members of the scientific community saying that the disease may be caused or at least associated with constant hits to the head –an occurrence that is very common in the sport.
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The news that Stabler was suffering from Stage 3 CTE was rather uncomforting and very sad for his family, especially if one has to think that he was already suffering from cancer. The only good news is that he finally was inducted to the Pro Football Hall of Fame.
The act of the three retired NFL players should serve as a good example for others who are in one way or another concerned or worried about the state of players in a sport that every American loves. It should set a precedence – not in a way that everyone will donate their brains, too, but rather in driving information and awareness about the disease.
