Junior Seau's family sues

His family is suing the NFL, the helmet manufacturers and I don't know who else for his suicide. Their position is that the NFL knew he had concussions and that led to the brain damages that eventually led to his suicide. (so they say)

I seriously doubt they'll be able to prove that but if they do, it will be the beginning of the end of football. One concussion will be the career ender for a player because of legal liability.

The helmets already have warnings in them. Don't the contracts cover injuries in depth?

It'll be really interesting to see how this plays out although it will probably be in the courts for years.

People like these are looking for "answers" or so they say. I mean, to them, there has to be a cause, someone else has to be at fault, it can't be the choices made by the deceased. Right?

Life is just one big risk. Nobody wakes up with the guarantee they will survive the day. The guy made the choice to be a Football Player. It is a rough and often dangerous sport that can result in injury or death. He put himself into that situation and the "equipment" they have is only as good as we humans can make to prevent the bad stuff from happening.

Lawsuits such as this are designed for "closure" or finding out the person who committed the deed was not at fault and someone should pay for it. There could be other things not even related to Football that made this guy kill himself not just the "failure" of the equipment to protect him.

Guess his family had no idea until now that football was a violent full contact sport?

Suits against the helmet manufacturer have been going on since the 80's with some success for a variety of injuries. Uo can only protect the human body so much. The NFL may be in trouble for not establishing a concussion protocol earlier.

Its sad, by most accounts Junior was not only a great football player but a pretty decent human being as well. So many players have had debilitating injuries from playing football, many have had brain injuries. Seau isn't the only NFL player to commit suicide. I think there definitely could be a connection between repeated brain trauma and suicide. I'll be watching the results. I love football, but if I had it to do over again my son probably wouldn't play.

Yep, it's a dangerous sport, no doubt about that. What I'm wondering is if the family will successfully connect the suicide to the concussions?

Also, I feel very badly that Seau committed suicide but where was the family in the months or years previously? Didn't they notice anything was amiss? I'm not saying they should have known but if they are going to blame football maybe they should look at other factors.

I played in college and the sheer speed of hits these days is dangerous in itself.It is a risk you take when you play the game. Not surprised though now that his income for the family is gone.

Contact sports are contact sports. Partake at your own risk. As we all know, there is no guarantee of being concussion-free, bone break-free, free of risk from bitten tongues, torn muscles or anything else.

So, what else is new?

Sugar Ray Leonard's detached retina wasn't due to referees or promoters knowing anything. It was simply as a result of him living a life being on the receiving end of fists. Like Seau's concussions and resulting brain damage were due to living a life being on the receiving end of impacts from everyone. Don't want to get injured? Don't enter the field, stop before it's too late, stop when you've had enough of the risk. But don't blame the piper when the piper comes calling.

I wonder if Ali's family is going to sue the maker of boxing gloves, because it's their fault, right?

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Originally Posted by JD

I wonder if Ali's family is going to sue the maker of boxing gloves, because it's their fault, right?

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Everlast = Parkinson's. :confused: :blink:

My guess is: Ali and family have more honor and class than to attempt such a thing.

Their Last pay day........................unfortunate.

Throw the case out, He willingly partook in a sport full of injury risks, was well paid to do so.

It is just a risk these guys take by playing. There are really good chance they could get hurt. That doesn't mean the NFL or manufacturers should be sued (except for cases in negligence, etc.)

I think it's important to remember there is a class action lawsuit representing over 2000 former players, accusing the NFL of knowing and hiding the fact that the sport has resulted in neurological injuries. For football we seem willing to look the other way. It's our favorite sport as Americans. I agree that anyone who plays is well aware that it's a dangerous sport. However, the NFL makes billions every year, and these players have extremely short and dangerous careers. A little honesty and proactive efforts in safety on behalf of the league may have avoided some of these lawsuits. I'm NOT saying I think the lawsuits are the way to go. I am saying, something needs to be done to protect these guys. I personally like Mike Ditkas theory of going back to leather helmets. That would stop these guys from using their heads as weapons.

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Originally Posted by ccw9mm

Contact sports are contact sports. Partake at your own risk. As we all know, there is no guarantee of being concussion-free, bone break-free, free of risk from bitten tongues, torn muscles or anything else.

So, what else is new?
....

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The only thing new is the notion that nobody is to blame for their own circumstance - they can always blame someone else. The precedent is set from the top down.

Risk/Reward is an ancient concept that every generation (up until ours) has understood.

Just yesterday, I had a business partner call me to apologize about a deal he brought, that we are both losing our butts own. I stopped him mid-sentence, and reminded him that we are both investors, looking to reap the rewards in exchange for risk, and that means that every now and then you take it in the teeth. It's part of how it all works.

Anybody that's played college ball knows that you're taking hits that your grand-kids will remember. Seau's story is tragic, but so are many untimely deaths. I miss the notion of being responsible for one's choices and actions.