Transcripts For KQED Frontline 20171124

Powerful sports league. You cant go against the nfl. They will squash you. Narrator next, the Award Winning frontline investigation of what the nfl knew, and when it knew it. Im really wondering if every single Football Player doesnt have this. Frontlinis made possible by contributions to your pbs station from viewers like you. Thank you. And by the corporation for public broadcasting. Major support for frontliis provided by the john d. And catherine t. Macarthur foundation, committed to building a more just, verdant, and peaceful world. More information is available at macfound. Org. Additional support is provided by ford foundation, working with visionaries on the front lines of social change worldwide, at fordfoundation. Org. The park foundation, dedicated to heightening Public Awareness of critical issues. The john and Helen Glessner family trust, supporting trustworthy journalism that informs and inspires. And by the frontline journalism fund, with major support from jon and jo ann hagler, and Additional Support from scott nathan and laura debonis. Second and three, ball on the three. In motion. Wide open. Touchdown the brains are precious cargo. Now back to the third, and he goes outside. We have to get the brain usually within hours of the death. Touchdown. Play action. Going deep. You have a brain thats intact; its been removed from the upper spinal cord. Picks it up, looks for running room. Hes at the 40, hes at the 45, midfield, hes gonna go Desean Jackson narrator it is the brain of a former Football Player. This is a process that is aweinspiring in the oldfashioned sense of the word. You have the responsibility of actually possessing somebodys brain, which is probably the best representation of who they were. You really treat it with the utmost respect. From a scientific perspective, theres this secret thats being unlocked. We take it out, we weigh it, we photograph it, all the external surfaces. The attitude is so careful about, that this is a person thats being delivered into their care. I never forget that the brain is the human being. I feel very privileged that someone has trusted me with this duty. Narrator in 2008, dr. Ann mckee was a leading alzheimers researcher. This is what i do. I look at brains, im fascinated by it. I can spend hours doing it. In fact, if i want to relax, thats one way i can relax. Narrator then one day, she received a phone call from the Boston University medical school. I called her and said, are you interested in looking at the brains of former Football Players . And she didnt drop a beat, and said, are you kidding . I had no idea that she was a super football fan. I was born with football. My brothers, my dad. I played football when i was a kid. I mean, you know, it was part of life, it was part of growing up. Its, you know, its a way of life, so i get it. Narrator now dr. Mckee was joining a team of researchers to build on the discovery of a brain disease, chronic traumatic encephalopathy cte. Shes learned a little bit about the work that had previously been done on this issue and shes eager to find some brains. Narrator mckee and colleagues from Boston University were determined to examine as many brains as they could. And this man knew how to get them. Chris nowinski shows up and says, look, ill find the brains for you, ill bring them to you, and theyre going to be Football Players. Are you interested . And she says, absolutely. You know, she describes this as the greatest collision on earth for her. Narrator for nowinski, the issue of cte is personal. He worries he has it. Id be a fool not to worry about cte personally. And i took as much brain trauma as anybody. I think i have more than enough reason to believe that im going to be fighting this myself, i am fighting it. Narrator at harvard, nowinski was a punishing tackler. He suffered countless head injuries. Then, instead of the nfl, he became a professional wrestler. He ends up with the nickname chris harvard, the persona of this sort of snobbish wrestler whos smarter than all the fans. You people should be grateful to have someone of my intelligence in your presence. Narrator for chris harvard, the performance often ended with a blow to the head. Chris harvard landed on his head quite a bit. You know, as much as wrestling is performance, theres a very, very small margin of error. And especially when youre learning the thing, you fall on your head a lot. Narrator nowinski began to have violent nightmares and migraine headaches. And i said, theres something really wrong with me. And the headache didnt go away for five years. Narrator brain trauma became an obsession. What motivated me every day was the fact that my head was killing me and i knew that i felt awful and i knew that i wasnt the only person, but i was a person in a position to make a difference. Narrator he would take on the task of finding brains of former Football Players for dr. Mckee. They call him the designated brain chaser, like thats his job, to go out and get the brains. Narrator almost right away, nowinski secured a portion of the brain of a 45yearold former tampa bay buccaneer, tom mchale. Tom mchale was a brilliant guy, went to cornell, had been playing football since a kid. His brilliance intellectually was matched by being an incredible athlete. Narrator tom and lisa mchale had three sons. Once his career was over, mchale ran a successful chain of restaurants. But then, uncharacteristically, trouble. Restlessness, irritability, and discontent describe tom to a t today, but no way is it anywhere near the man i had known and the man i had been married to for years. The change was so diabolical. He became a drug addict, he became depressed, he became. Had irate moments of violent temper. Narrator mchales addictions spiraled out of control painkillers, cocaine. I remember so clearly him looking at me and this is going back, you know, in the final months of his life and saying, lisa, when i look in your eyes, all i see is disappointment. And i honestly dont know whether he was seeing my disappointment, or whether it was his own disappointment that he was seeing reflected back. But it pains me to think of how much that hurt him. A former tampa bay buccaneer was found dead this morning. Former Tampa Bay Buccaneers player. Narrator he had died of an overdose. We dissect and section his brain, do a whole series of microscopic slides, look at it with all sorts of different stains for different things, and then come to a conclusion about what the diagnosis is. Narrator what she saw was that telltale protein, tau. This is a 45yearold with terrific disease. I mean, he had florid disease. He has tau in all these regions of his brain. Narrator it was chronic traumatic encephalopathy. The tau was effectively closing in around the brain cells and choking them and its impacting the way the brain is working and ultimately erupting in issues around memory, agitation, anger. I remember my feeling. I was scared. I was really scared. It really was a turning point. It was a new understanding that, hey, you know, this might be bigger than we think. Narrator dr. Mckee soon had three brains, all with cte, but rather than just publish in scientific journals, Chris Nowinski was determined to get the word out. Nowinski, who is not a scientist, says, there are people getting hit here. If we speak up now, we may be able to, if not save lives, at least prevent the damage that we are seeing on ann mckees table. Narrator nowinski decided to take on the nfl in a very public way at their biggest event, the 2009 super bowl. All right, what a night its finally here. Super bowl sundays kicking into high gear. Narrator the glitz and glamour of the nfl production machine was in full gear, developed over decades. Highly choreographed. Running and hitting with all their might. Yeah, everyones ready. Narrator a National Event with a carefully crafted story. The whole worlds ready, kick that ball off the tee because the super bowl rocks on nbc. Narrator in tampa, before the big game, nowinski and mckee tried to crash the festivities by holding a press conference. This is the genius of nowinski, really, i mean, right . I mean, were going to present her findings. This is something you never should see. Where do we want to announce that . Oh, lets go to tampa bay where the super bowls about to play out, where theres 4,000 media members who are there waiting to watch. And i can tell you, i have examined thousands of brains and this is not a normal part of aging. This is not something you normally see in the brain. They were saying, football caused this, this is an issue. I think mckee uses the word crisis. She says, this is a crisis and anybody who doesnt believe it is in denial. Narrator also on the panel, nowinskis other star, lisa mchale. Eight months ago, i lost my best friend, my college sweetheart, and my husband of 18 years. Narrator lisa mchale had decided to go public with her husbands story. I never hesitated to be public with toms findings because i was so fully blown away to know that tom could have had the kind of injury he had to his brain and that it could have been caused by football, and i said, my god, of course, this is information that i would have liked to have had. Narrator and after her husbands death, mchale decided to become an advocate for dr. Mckees research. He is now the sixth confirmed case of cte among former nfl players. And bearing in mind that only six former nfl players have been examined for cte, i find these results to be not only incredibly significant, but profoundly disturbing. Narrator but that day, there were few reporters listening. There were thousands of reporters across the street and probably two dozen were willing to walk across and learn about cte. That was the shocking part. You know, here we were in the midst of everything, and this potentially giant story was being told, and virtually no one was there. Everyone, thank you so much for your time, and were available if you want to stick around. Narrator nowinskis press conference was no match for the show the nfl was putting on across town. The buildup is over, and away we go in super bowl xliii. Narrator then, one of the most watched Television Broadcasts in history. A 30second ad sold for 3 million. Its all right, were here now narrator it was the crowning event for a year in which the nfl earned almost 8 billion. Heres the runup, and super bowl xliii is underway with the flashbulbs apoppin. The league is this Massive Force financially. The super bowl is a spectacle. Tv is paying huge money to televise the sport. He gets it away quickly and finds the tight end over the middle, and its heath miller. The nfl is broadcast over five networks. Espn, where we work, their new contract with the nfl is worth almost 2 billion a year. And he hits Anquan Boldin so theyre basically paying around 120 million per game. Thats like the budget of a harry potter movie every week, week in, week out. And the Pittsburgh Steelers become the First Franchise in history to win six super bowls. Ladies and gentlemen, here to present the Vince Lombardi trophy, the commissioner of the National Football league, Roger Goodell. Well, some said that we could not top last years super bowl, but the steelers and cardinals did that tonight. Narrator presiding over it all, the most powerful man in sports, Roger Goodell. All the steeler fans, congratulations on your sixth world championship. Narrator he sat atop a multibilliondollar empire that he was determined to protect. One of his mantras was to protect the shield, the nfl shield; to protect the integrity of the game. Narrator but now, the league might face huge lawsuits and a tarnished image if dr. Mckees findings about cte held up. They wanted to hear directly from dr. Mckee. She was invited to their headquarters. We head on up to a very, very fancy conference room, nice wood paneling, jerseys and trophies in the glass, and it was probably 15 members of the committee. Narrator for years, the nfls mild Traumatic Brain Injury Committee had been Publishing Research claiming there was no evidence of a link between football and longterm brain damage. Im up against a lot of doubters. Im up against people who dont think that any of this holds any water. So fine, im just going to show them what i have. And they kept interrupting. Narrator Indianapolis Colt Team Physician dr. Henry feuer was one of the nfl doctors at the meeting. I just have a problem. Ann mckee, she cannot tell me where its starting. We dont know the cause and effect. We dont know that right now. We dont know the incidence. Narrator the Committee Members believed dr. Mckee could not answer two important questions. Causation did football cause cte . And prevalence how many players had it . She was seeing only those that were in trouble, and we know that there are thousands roaming around that are not having problems. So i think thats where we may have had an issue. I think were very early in the evolutionary understanding of cte. A certain percentage of the individuals diagnosed with this have had steroid abuse, alcohol abuse, other substances abuses. We dont know the concussion history in many of these. And there may be other confounding factors in terms of the genetics that we simply dont understand. They were convinced it was wrong, and i felt that they were in a very serious state of denial. I remember at one point one of the nfl doctors asking, couldnt you be misdiagnosing this . These all look like they could be frontal temporal dementia. And ann said, well, actually, i was on the n. I. H. Committee that defined how you diagnose that disease, so no, theyre definitely different diseases. Like, she had the experience and they didnt. Narrator and according to dr. Mckee, there was Something Else something familiar about the way the nfl committee was acting. I dont want to get into the sexism too much, but sexism plays a big role when youre a doctor of my age whos come up in the ranks with a lot of male doctors. Sexism is part of my life. And getting in that room with a bunch of males who already thought they knew all the answers, more sexism. I mean, you know, it was like, oh, the girl talked. Now we can get back into some serious business. I dont know why she feels that way. I thought that she presented herself, as i recall and its been several years that there was something in her manner. And i think shes a brilliant woman. Shes done a great job. There was just something about the way she said it, and not that everybody was looking down, it was just, um. Narrator dr. Feuer insists dr. Mckee is mistaken about how she was treated. If we, for some reason, came across as being disrespectful, then i would say that everybody else we interviewed over the 15 years must have felt the same way. Thats all i can say about that. And i feel strongly about that, too. We would listen, and, thank you, and thats it. Whether she wanted us to start yap. You know, i dont know where shes coming from on that. Narrator the meeting had changed nothing. Just a few blocks from nfl headquarters, the commissioner had another problem. In a midtown manhattan restaurant, an internal nfl Research Document was leaked to a reporter. Documents were passed to me at smith and wollenskys in manhattan, in an envelope i mean, it was great, it was very deep throat by somebody who shall remain nameless. But he literally slid it across the table in an envelope. Narrator it was a Scientific Study of former players commissioned by the National Football league itself. At the bottom of page 32, there it was dementia. And they had asked players, or their representatives, their wives, have you been diagnosed by a physician as having alzheimers, dementia, or any other memoryrelated disease . What it showed was that former nfl players seem to have memoryrelated disorders at a much, much higher rate than people in the regular community. And here was a study that the nfl supported, and it came out not looking too good for the nfl. It was the people who the league hired to find out the answers to these questions giving them the answers. And thats what they were. And so, you knew that this was going to be big. Narrator the study went to the heart of the prevalence question. In this case, it showed the prevalence of Brain Disorders was far higher among Football Players than the nfl anticipated. So now schwarz calls up the nfl to get a response, and what he gets from greg aiello, the league spokesman, is more denials. Theyre now denying their own study. Narrator aiello insisted the studys design was flawed, but now the nfls concussion crisis was again national news. And so its becoming almost impossible for the nfl to ignore it. Narrator at the same time, another force was also causing trouble for the nfl and the commissioner the wives and widows of players with cte. I dont think anyone else but the wives, sisters, mothers, daughters, and ann mckee, could have forced this issue into american consciousness. Narrator Eleanor Perfetto was one of them. Her husband, ralph wenzel, had played for the Pittsburgh Steelers. As the disease progressed, he went from being ill but fairly functional to getting to the point where he could no longer, you know, dress or feed himself. And in the last year and a half to two years before he died, he couldnt even walk anymore. Narrator shed spent years trying to get help from the nfl and its players association. Then perfetto took matters into her own hands. She showed up uninvited to a League Meeting about caring for retired players. Theres going to be a meeting that the commissioner is holding with former players. And her husband, suffering from dementia, obviously cant be represented there by anybody but her. And shes told shes not allowed to enter the room. Narrator it was the commissioner himself who kept perfetto out. And i said, id like to attend this meeting. And he said, no, you cant attend. Its only for players. Its not for anyone else. And i said, but my husband is a player who is severely disabled, and he cant be here right now. Narrator nevertheless, the commissioner said no. The issue is head injuries among players and if those injuries can lead. Narrator as the concussion story received more attention, the coverage helped spark interest in the nations capital. Congress considers concussions in the nfl. Congress is getting into the game. Theyre looking into the longterm impact. The committee will come to order. Congress is looking into the longterm impact of concussions. Congress saw it as a way to put the nfls concussion policies on trial, in the court of public opinion. Narrator the commissioner arrived like a celebrity, the Star Attraction at the hearing and the focus of all the cameras. Goodell is asked pointblank if he stands by the idea that concussions dont hurt pro Football Players. Let me address your first question. He cant answer. Youre obviously seeing a lot of data and a lot of information that our committees and others have presented with respect to the linkage, and the medical experts should be the one to be able to continue that debate. I just asked you a simple question. Whats the answer . The answer is, the medical experts would know better than i would with respect to that. His consistent response to questions was, im not a scientist, and any questions about the longterm effects of concussion or head trauma in nfl players are better addressed to scientists. Narrator one at a time, Committee Members went after goodell. We have heard from the nfl time and time again. Youre always studying, youre always trying, youre hopeful. I want to know, what are you doing now . The nfl sort of reminds me of the Tobacco Companies pre90s, when they kept saying, no, theres no link between smoking and damage to your health or ill health effects. The last thing the league wanted to be dealing with in that moment was the analogy to big tobacco. Theres nobody in america who doesnt know what that means. That means denial. You have the commissioner of the nfl whos being hauled before congress to answer why his own research arm has been denying, since 1994, that football causes brain damage when everybody from the new york timto former nfl players to the respected Research Scientists are saying, in fact, the opposite is true. Talk about nfl owners as being like tobacco executives. But i think its seen as being plausible. The nfl, similar to what the Tobacco Industry engaged in. Narrator back in new york, with the pressure mounting, the commissioner decided to make some dramatic changes. The nfl changes its playbook. New rules for treating athletes with concussions. Nfl commissioner Roger Goodell wants all teams to adhere to a new policy for head injuries. Theyd just been hauled before congress and the commissioner was embarrassed by linda sanchez, theyd been compared to big tobacco, and they were trying to fight back. Narrator the commissioner initiated a series of new rules designed to protect players from concussions. It was quite obvious what they were doing. They were in the middle of a major damage control operation. Narrator a new Concussion Committee would be formed, led by two prominent neurosurgeons. The nfl is committed to medical and scientific research. Narrator and there was one other surprise. I read on the wire that the nfl had given a Million Dollars to Boston University. I was like, what . And so i called up chris, like, what the hells going on . He didnt know what was going on hes, like, what are you talking about . The answer was, i dont know what youre talking about this doesnt sound right at all. A cbs reporter wanted to know what i thought of the gift of a Million Dollars. That was the first i heard of it. I was, like, floored. Narrator and goodell offered dr. Mckee something she needed even more than money brains. They get a letter from the league. It says, you guys are now the nfls preferred brain bank, and that the league will help with efforts to direct families to donate the brains of former players to boston so that they will be studied for cte. The National Football league says it will encourage current and former players to donate. Narrator as the story of the deal broke. The nfl is donating 1 million. Narrator . The nfls spokesman greg aiello received a call from reporter alan schwarz. While we were talking, he said, its clear that there are longterm consequences to concussions in nfl players. Now, that kind of statement dont make news if anybody else says it. But this time, it was the league saying it. Schwarz stops. He knows that the nfl has not only been denying this for years, that theyve never come close to uttering anything even remotely close to this. And i said, greg, you realize thats the first time that anyone associated with the league has made that connection. And i remember he was a little. I dont. Whats the adjective . Annoyed. He was annoyed. The timenow suddenly has a huge story that the nfl has acknowledged a link between brain damage and football. And sure enough, stripped across the top of the times sports section the next day is that very story. Narrator at dr. Mckees research lab, thanks to the nfls endorsement, the brain Bank Business was booming. There were nfl players out there that were talking to their wives and saying, i think this might be something. Im experiencing some problems and im thinking i should donate my brain to this work. Narrator by 2010, dr. Mckee had looked at the brains of 20 nfl players. She had found cte in 19 of them. It was during that time that a brain arrived that would dramatically raise the stakes. Owen thomas to me was a critical case. Here we have a 21yearold who was a hardhitting lineman from the age of nine on. And then, seemingly out of nowhere, he decided to take his own life. Had ever been diagnosed with a concussion, never had a problem in the world. Narrator owen thomas had hanged himself in his offcampus apartment. Chris nowinski secured his brain for dr. Mckee. Without any history of diagnosed concussions, it seemed unlikely he had cte. I was fully prepared to see nothing. I remember late at night looking at the brain and thinking, just going to knock this one off. And it just floored me, it just. I just couldnt believe what i was seeing. Narrator such an advanced case of cte had never been found in such a young person. In, like, 20 spots in his frontal lobe. Hes 21. Hes so young. You know. That changes the game to me. Wrapped up and brought down by owen thomas. Narrator because hed never had a diagnosed concussion, dr. Mckee suspected thomas might have gotten cte from the everyday subconcussive hits that are an inherent part of the game. Another nice play by owen thomas. Those subconcussive hits, those hits that dont even rise to the level of what we call a concussion, or symptoms, just playing the game can be dangerous. The rock is home. A crucial matchup in the afc. Mckee is saying, look, this is very much an issue at the core of the game, of offensive linemen and defensive linemen pounding the crud out of each other. grunting . On every single play, on every single down at every single practice, and theres no getting around that. Narrator it was a controversial theory that raised fundamental questions about the way the game was played. The human body was not created or built to play football. When you have force against force, youre going to have injuries. And im not talking about the knees and, you know, all of that stuff is a given. But from a neurological standpoint, youre going to have some brain trauma. Narrator harry carson has been studying the matter since he retired 25 years ago. You know, most people are keyed in on the big hit. But the little miniconcussions are just as dangerous because you might be sustaining six to ten, maybe a dozen of these hits during the course of a game. And if youre going up against topflight players who are able to perfect those skills of hitting you upside the head or getting hit with an elbow, its one of those things that at some point youre going to pay for it down the line. I really worry about my lineman brothers. I really worry for my running back brothers. I mean, thats the truth. You talk about a nefarious injury, one that you never feel until its too late. So thats the, thats just. When i look back over 30 Years Associated with football, thats the thing thats most alarming to me. The way the game is played, i dont see how you can eliminate all of those routine hits that linemen make every play. How do you eliminate them and have the game still be football . Narrator for dr. Mckee and others, it raised the obvious question how safe is it for children to play football . What time is it . Game time all dogs now barking i believe you, you believe me from a physical risk standpoint, you know what you are doing when you sign your kid up, that he can hurt his knee, okay. But what you should know now is, your child could develop a brain injury as a result of playing football. Its not just on the pro level, its on every level of football. The question is, do you want it to be your child . Narrator and for the b. U. Advocate Chris Nowinski, it was a danger the nfl helped to create. As long as the nfl dismissed this, that meant that parents were signing their kids up to go play football believing that there was no risk. And that wasnt fair to those kids, or those parents. But especially those kids. Lets give him a big round of applause. Hes a rough, hes a tough. Narrator dr. Mckee, who had grown up loving football, has struggled with her feelings about the sport. I dont feel that i am in a position to make a proclamation for everyone else. If you had children who are eight, ten, 12, would they play football . Eight, ten, 12 . No, they would not. Why . Because the way football is being played currently, that ive seen, its dangerous. Its dangerous and it could impact their longterm mental health. You only get one brain. The thing you want your kids to do most of all is succeed in life and be everything they can be. And if theres anything that may infringe on that, that may limit that, i dont want my kids doing it. Narrator mckees warnings about the danger of the game have made her the subject of sharp criticism. Shes a lightning rod because people see her as the woman out to destroy football as we know it. Probably the most hurtful charge thats been leveled against her is that shes crossed the line from scientist to activist. Narrator a number of prominent scientists believe she has overstated the dangers of playing football. Theres a kind of polarization in that the b. U. Group are clearly the advocates for cte research. But its not the only issue. There are other issues that weve got to look at. How common is this . How many brain traumas do you need to get this . Is this something that everybody will get if they have enough brain trauma . Or is it the result of steroid or drug abuse in a small number of nfl players . We dont know. These are questions, not statements of fact. Narrator some researchers say dr. Mckee has examined only a limited sample of players and too few brains to justify her conclusions. There has been a sense, a fear thats been put into parents, that maybe i shouldnt let my kids play sports. Having said that, i still think its something that we need to be concerned about. We just need more information on it in terms of what exactly is the incidence and the risk. Nobody knows that at this point in time. Its still being debated, depends on who you listen to. Those that have been conducting the autopsies are working with what they have to work with. I think that we need to learn more about these former athletes, learn more about them during their living years so that we can better understand what their neurocognitive function is like, what their emotional status is like. We just have to be careful not to say that this causes that and be able to connect those dots without having more prospective analysis. Im not surprised that people dont believe me. They dont have. They dont look at. They havent done this work. They havent looked at brain after brain after brain. I just feel that i guess the more cases we get, the more we persevere, the more they hear, eventually theyll change their mind. Narrator still, mckee and her colleagues at b. U. Acknowledge there are limits to her research. Not everyone who hits their head gets this disease, and so a critical question is, why does one person get it and another person doesnt . There must be really important variables genetics, things about the type of exposure to brain trauma people get. We need to figure those things out. Narrator dr. Mckee admits shes seeing only a small sample. I think to be truthful, even a selection bias in an autopsy sample even if the family of an individual who is affected is much more likely to donate their brain than a person who had no symptoms whatsoever given that, we have still been just ridiculously successful in getting examples of this disease. Narrator dr. Mckee has now examined the brains of 46 former nfl players. 45 had cte. We have an enormously high hit rate. I mean, you know, that would be extraordinary with any other disease, to be able to pull in that many cases just that were suspected. So i think the incidence and prevalence have to be a lot higher than people realize. Narrator to her, it may be the beginnings of an epidemic. I think its going to be a shockingly high percentage. Im really wondering where this stops. Im really wondering on some level if every single Football Player doesnt have this. Narrator and then, another death. An apparent suicide by a powerful athlete. A beloved nfl star apparently took his own life today. Linebacker junior seau died today in an apparent suicide. The untimely death of junior seau is provoking questions. Narrator as the news broke, the question emerged did cte play a part in junior seaus death . Here comes seau. Hes sacked narrator he had used his body and his head for 20 years in the nfl. Number 55 was a hardhitting linebacker. Pain and injury were his specialty. He even bragged about it once on an nfl film. A perfect hit is when youre faced up, coming oneonone, and you hear him go, uh. player groaning just a little, uh. Narrator he talked about the price he was willing to pay. You have to sacrifice your body, you have to sacrifice years down the line. When we are 50, 40 years old, we probably wont be able to walk. Thats the sacrifice that we take to play this game. Narrator and it had paid off. Seau made millions. He was a philanthropist, beloved in his community. But then, a familiar story his life fell apart. Junior seau was arrested for Domestic Violence in oceanside, california, early on monday. Seau accused of hitting his 25yearold girlfriend. Junior seau drove his suv right off a cliff in california. Former pro football star has apparently fallen on hard times. Narrator at 43, his Business Empire had imploded. Hed lost millions of dollars gambling. He wasted everything. We didnt know why he was detached or forgetting, or why he would bark at us for nothing. We didnt know. The past two years had been the roughest. And for a couple of months at a time, i wouldnt hear from him at all. And that would scare me. We got really close, and, you know, i feel like its turning around, okay, he wants to be part of my life. And then all of a sudden, i wouldnt hear from him. He is truly a legend, and he will be with us forever. Narrator seau was one of the most popular players and out of the league for only two years. His brain became the most soughtafter ever. Youve got a halfdozen prominent researchers immediately began to mobilize to try to get their hands on this brain tissue. I spent time making calls. We had a lot of mutual friends. I spoke to people at his foundation and just said, we would, like every other case, we would like to review this case if you want. Narrator but behind the scenes, nfl doctors worked to keep seaus brain away from dr. Mckee and Chris Nowinskis pr machine. They wanted the brain to go to the National Institutes of health, the nih. Getting it in the hands of good science is the goal there. So yes, i think that was probably what was driving the suggestion, that lets have nih get involved. Narrator the final diagnosis in seaus case was national news. Abc news and espn have learned exclusively seaus brain. Narrator he had cte. Showed visible signs of cte, chronic traumatic encephalopathy. Narrator in the months following seaus death, the nfl went on the offensive. The commissioner helped to promote a youth football safety initiative, the heads up program. The league donated 30 million to the nih to study sports injuries including joint disease, chronic pain and cte. We recently committed 30 million to the National Institutes of health. Good pr is one part of the nfl strategy, but the other piece of it is that the nfl wants to come off as being very forwardlooking. The nfl wants to keep pushing these questions into the future, keep the discoveries going, make it seem like these questions that still need to be resolved are things that the league is working with doctors and researchers on. Narrator it was a message the commissioner himself delivered, granting a rare tv news interview the morning of the super bowl. Im going to ask you this question because some widows of some nfl players have asked me to ask you do you now acknowledge that there is a link between the game and these concussions that people have been getting, some of these brain injuries . Well, bob, thats why were investing in the research, so that we can answer the question, what is the link . What causes some of the injuries that our players are still dealing with . And we take those issues very seriously. Though the league previously through greg aiello acknowledged a link, there is no more acknowledging a link exists. Theres, the science is still emerging and were really going to try and do longterm studies on this, and were going to figure out whether theres a link. Were going to let the medical individuals make those points. We are going to give them the money, advance that science. In the meantime, we have to do everything we can to advance the game and make sure its safe. He said, almost identically to what he had said before congress back in 2009, which was, were going to let the medical people decide that. Narrator almost two decades after the nfl founded its first Scientific Committee to research the issue, the league continues to insist the evidence of a link between cte and football is unclear. It sure looks like it was just a relentless and endless delaying action. Year after year after year, at crisis after crisis after crisis, the concussions committee and its members assured the public that the league was looking into this. The league actually never got around to looking at it in any kind of valid way. Were talking in the year 2013. This committee was founded in 1994. Maybe there should be better evidence by now. Narrator as the concussion crisis deepened, the commissioner faced yet another challenge a lawsuit brought by more than 4,500 retired players. The threat to the nfl from this litigation was existential. The threat was that the league was going to have to pay out in the billions with a b, not millions with an m. Narrator about onethird of nfl veterans, including some of the biggest former stars, claimed the nfl had fraudulently concealed the danger to their brains. The main allegations here are. Its very simple. There was a very severe hazard that was present in professional football, and it was a little secret. The nfl knew it, but the players certainly didnt know it. Narrator on the other side, the nfls lawyers. Representing the National Football league will be paul clement, who will be flanked by anastasia danias, shes from the National Football league, and also Beth Wilkinson from paul weiss. Narrator they insisted the league had done nothing wrong. Lets be clear. We strongly deny those allegations that we withheld any information or misled the players. And if we have to defend this suit, as paul was alluding to, we will do that and be able to make those factual allegations. But we absolutely deny those allegations. Narrator but away from the cameras, the two sides were engaged in tense courtordered negotiations. The players, initially, they were requesting around 2 billion or a little more than 2 billion, and what weve been told is the nfl was offering virtually nothing they were offering peanuts, as one person said. Narrator the players believed they had significant leverage a threat to the nfl. The threat was that the doctors and trainers, neuropsychologists, maybe owners, maybe commissioners and excommissioners, were going to have to testify under oath as to what they knew and when. Historic settlement today, with the nfl. Narrator then, with football season about to begin, a surprise settlement. Settlement between the National Football league and thousands of its former players. Narrator the league agreed to pay 765 million to resolve the lawsuit. It appears as if it ties it up quite nicely. The two sides figured out that that was fair, and they were okay with it. And so the image of the situation to most fans is that the nfl got taken to task for the concussion problem, okay . There is a proposed settlement in a huge concussion lawsuit. Narrator but the settlement left one big question unanswered. Theres no admission whatsoever of guilt by the league. The league makes it very clear theyre not admitting any guilt, that theres no acknowledgment of any causation between football and the possibility of longterm brain damage. And that was a prominent part of the settlement. I dont think we needed a trial to know that the nfl conducted a lot of shoddy research. And it wasnt hypothetical. It wasnt a supposition. What the trial would have done was bring out that evidence. You didnt need the trial to know that there was something wrong there, but the details of how they went about it, thats whats going to stay locked away. Narrator one week later, the commissioner made the leagues position clear. There was no admission of guilt, there was no recognition that anything was caused by football. Narrator the league would not have to answer those tough questions about what they knew and when they knew it. Weve reached an agreement here that resolves these issues, and well move forward from there. I think everyone now has a better sense of what damage you can get from playing football. And i think the nfl has given everybody 765 million reasons why you dont want to play football. Erenberg touchdown touchdown, Pittsburgh Steelers listen to this crowd, theyre on fire narrator for now, the future of the league and the game of football seem secure. Franco harris is now to the 30, big pileup. Narrator but fundamental questions remain about how the game will be played and who will play it. You love em wild and woolly and youre seeing it now. Youve got the most popular sport in america basically on notice. Youve got the very real question being asked of whether the nature of playing the sport exposes you to brain damage and lots of science that suggests that it can. An awesome, physical team were the steelers today. And that raises all sorts of questions for guys who are playing in the league, guys who played in the league, moms, kids, all of us who love football. Its pretty scary. Its a big deal. And the future opponents are going to have some trouble. crowd cheering narrator since this Program First aired, Roger Goodell and the nfl have finalized the settlement with players and their families. The payout could now exceed 1 billion. By the summer of 2017, the first payments, some for as much as 5 million, were approved. The legal part of this for the nfl isnt over. You know, the settlement solved part of it for them, but you still have people who have opted out, choosing to fight on. Narrator after a dispute with the nih, the leagues 30 Million Research partnership is ending. Much of that money has not been spent. And dr. Ann mckee continues to study the connection between cte and football. She has now examined the brains of 111 nfl players. All but one tested positive for cte. For ten years, f. B. I. Agent john oneil was obsessed with osama bin laden. He said that were at war with these people. He warned of the threat to the united states. They are here to hurt us. But the f. B. I. Headquarters had stopped listening to him. So he took a new job as head of security at the world trade center. The night before he died he said to me, were due for something big. The man who knew, a frontline investigation. Go to pbs. Org frontline to watch more of frontlines exclusive interviews with nfl players. Force against force. Nefarious injury, one that youd never feel. Their families. You know, your brain cant function. And the scientists. I was shocked. To learn more about how the nfl tracks concussions among todays players, visit our watch page, where you can screen more than 200 frontline documentaries, then connect to the Frontline Community on facebook, twitter, and pbs. Org frontline. Frontlinis made possible by contributions to your pbs station from viewers like you. Thank you. And by the corporation for public broadcasting. Major support for frontliis provided by the john d. And catherine t. Macarthur foundation, committed to building a more just, verdant, and peaceful world. More information is available at macfound. Org. Additional support is provided by ford foundation, working with visionaries on the front lines of social change worldwide, at fordfoundation. Org. The park foundation, dedicated to heightening Public Awareness of critical issues. The john and Helen Glessner family trust, supporting trustworthy journalism that informs and inspires. And by the frontline journalism fund, with major support from jon and jo ann hagler, and Additional Support from scott nathan and laura debonis. Captioned by Media Access Group at wgbh access. Wgbh. Org for more on this and other frontline programs, visit our website at pbs. Org frontline. Frontlines league of denial is available on dvd. To order, visit shoppbs. Org or call 1800playpbs. Frontline is also available for download on itunes. Youre watching pbs. 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