Boston center finds another NFL player suffered from brain damage

McKee assessed Duerson’s brain, finding a “classic” buildup of a protein called tau in the areas that control impulse, mood and behavior. Stern talked with Duerson’s friends and family and examined medical records. He said Duerson began demonstrating symptoms about five years ago.

Duerson, who also played for the New York Giants and the Phoenix Cardinals and retired from the NFL in 1993, was an accomplished athlete and businessman. In recent years, his life unraveled.

He lost his food service business to bankruptcy and his home to foreclosure. He complained of trouble remembering things, and he struggled with a short fuse. In 2006, he pleaded guilty to a misdemeanor charge after pushing his wife, Alicia, during an argument. They divorced in 2008.

Starting as a boy, Duerson had played football for 24 seasons. Researchers said yesterday that he suffered at least 10 concussions during his professional years alone, including several from hits that knocked him unconscious.

Alicia Duerson and the couple’s four children attended yesterday’s announcement. Their son, Tregg, thanked the researchers.

“Through their efforts and God’s grace we have been given the gift of closure,” he said. “It is our hope that, through this research, questions that go beyond our interests may be answered – questions that lead to a safer game of football, from professional to Pop Warner.”

The center, which also studies veterans, is a partnership between Boston University and the Bedford VA Medical Center.

The NFL issued the following statement:

We once again express our deepest sympathy to the Duerson family. Dave Duerson was an outstanding player, but an even better person, including being recognized in 1987 as the NFL Man of the Year (now the Walter Payton Award) for his significant contributions to community service. We hope these findings will contribute more to the understanding of CTE. Our Head, Neck and Spine Medical Committee will study today’s findings, and as a league we will continue to support the work of the scientists at the Boston University Center and elsewhere to address this issue in a forthright and effective way. We also will continue to ensure that concussions are properly treated in the NFL, expand the help we are providing to our retired players, further evaluate playing rule and policy changes to reduce and prevent unnecessary contact with the head, and advocate for the passage of Lystedt laws in all states to better protect young athletes in that suffer concussions in any sport.