Throughout my career, the core of my work has been helping people in need, often those suffering medical repercussions from their work, whether from asbestos exposure, benzene, or years spent playing in the NFL.
In an emotional interview on “Good Morning America,” former NFL running back Chris Johnson revealed that he was diagnosed last year with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), commonly known as Lou Gehrig’s disease. He was 39 years old at the time of his diagnosis.
Johnson was one of the fastest men ever to carry a football, a player whose 2,006-yard season in 2009 remains among the greatest in NFL history. Today, the disease has progressed so rapidly that Johnson communicates through a speech-generating device controlled by his eyes.
ALS is a particularly cruel disease. It is a progressive neurodegenerative disease that attacks the nerve cells controlling voluntary muscle movement, severing the connection between the brain and the muscles. As those nerve cells die, patients experience muscle weakness, difficulty speaking and swallowing, and progressive loss of mobility. Most ultimately die of respiratory failure. There is currently no cure.
ALS is not just one person’s diagnosis. It belongs to the whole family. Spouses become caregivers. Children watch a parent lose the ability to hold them. And for younger patients like Johnson, the burdens multiply with loss of possible future income.
Roughly 5,000 Americans are diagnosed with ALS each year, and approximately 30,000 are living with the disease at any given time. The average life expectancy after diagnosis is generally 2 to 5 years, though some individuals live considerably longer. Most ALS diagnoses occur between the ages of 55 and 75. A diagnosis at 39 is strikingly unusual.
Johnson’s announcement inevitably raises questions that the football world has been asking for years. Research from Boston University’s CTE Center found that professional football players are roughly four times more likely to develop and die from ALS than the general adult male population, and that players who developed ALS tended to have longer careers than those who did not. While researchers have not definitively established why, repetitive head impacts and traumatic brain injuries are suspected to play a role.
Johnson joins a tragic fraternity of former NFL players who have battled this disease. This sad grouping of men helped advance research, expand public understanding, and force a long-overdue reckoning with the neurological risks of professional football.
Our firm remains deeply committed to helping former players and their families navigate the complexities of neurological disease claims, including benefits available through the NFL’s settlement programs and disability systems. These cases are complicated. Science gets smarter every year, deadlines are important to track, and working with families facing a devastating diagnosis is never easy work.
The causes of ALS are still being studied, and no one can say with certainty what role football played in Chris Johnson’s diagnosis. But stories like his serve as a powerful reminder that the risks of professional football can extend decades beyond a player’s final game. Continued research, advocacy, and support for former players and their families are not optional; they are essential.
Our thoughts are with Chris, Brittany, and their four children. I’m proud my career has offered me the chance to advocate for people like Chris Johnson.
