NFL concussions: Two more NFL champions pledge their brains to science
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Version 0 of 1. Two NFL champions have joined the list of current and former players that have pledged to donate their brains to scientific research when they die. Both Sidney Rice and Steve Weatherford told Fox News they wanted to support research for chronic traumatic encephalopathy, or CTE, a degenerative disease found in the brains of people who have sustained repeated brain trauma. The repeated concussions suffered by many NFL players have led to several CTE diagnoses and are suspected to be related to a couple of high-profile cases of suicide in former NFL players. CTE is associated with memory loss, confusion, impaired judgment, impulse control problems, aggression, depression and progressive dementia, according to Boston University. Mr Rice is a retired wide receiver who won the Super Bowl with the Seattle Seahawks in 2014. He told Fox News that he believes he has been concussed 10 times during his lifetime, the earliest coming when he was 8 years old. Mr Weatherford is the punter for the New York Giants and won the 2012 Super Bowl with the team. He said he thinks he has sustained two concussions during his playing career, adding that he hopes researchers will be able to compare his brain to that of a player who has sustained many more concussions. PBS reports that the 2014 NFL season produced a total of 123 concussions, down from 152 in 2013 and 173 in 2012. CTE can only be diagnosed by a post-mortem brain examination, making pledges by Mr Rice and Mr Weatherford crucial to understanding more about the disease.
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