Many former NFL players may have been satisfied with the settlement reached between themselves and the league for the concussion lawsuit, but Kevin Mawae feels much differently.
The former eight-time All-Pro center and president of the NFLPA voiced his dissatisfaction with the settlement on Thursday. To Mawae, the big win for the league is that they were able to settle with the players without going through the discovery process, which could have revealed some damaging information.
Here’s what Mawae wrote on his blog:
The players involved in the lawsuit will get a share, but really, other than the guys who are in a physically or financially critical situation, will less than $100k really change most of the guys life, now or in the future?
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What the players lost is the ability to get complete discovery of any and all the information the league had regarding head injuries dating as far back as possible. That info has now been securely locked away tighter than Coca Cola’s original recipe and won’t be touched until one or more guys files an individual lawsuit…tough thing to do individually against a multi-Billion dollar corporation.The NFL doesn’t have to say anything, admit any wrong doing, or even apologize…the same league that once called players ‘cattle’ and themselves the ‘herders’ have just put the herd back into the pen.
Mawae also told ESPN’s Chris Mortensen that he considered the $765 million settlement to be “hush money” and a big relief for the owners. He’s probably right about that. There was some concern that the lawsuit could literally end the league if the players cleaned out the owners with a settlement, or if too much damaging information was learned in the discovery. Now, the league can just move on and not sweat it. This was a win for the owners, even if it came at a steep price.
