By Ken Belson | The New York Times
MINNEAPOLIS — Getting readers to spend $25 on a book about athletes and concussions can be a hard sell. The topic isn’t uplifting, and the biggest audience for sports books — people who are fans — typically prefers to read about famous coaches and players.
Yet Ben Utecht, a tight end who retired from the N.F.L. in 2010 after absorbing too many hits to the head, still managed to draw a small group of people at a Barnes & Noble in Minneapolis recently, most of them eager to shake his hand and buy a copy of his book, “Counting the Days While My Mind Slips Away,” which is published by Howard Books, a division of Simon and Schuster.
As awareness regarding the dangerous effects of concussions is growing through the efforts of advocates and former NFL players, we are hopeful that relief for former players, affected by various cognitive impairments connected to concussions, is soon to come.
On December 12, 2016, the U.S. Supreme Court denied review of the Settlement between former players and the NFL . The Settlement had previously been approved and affirmed by both the trial court and the Third Circuit Court of Appeals, but was brought before the Supreme Court by some who wished to challenge the Settlement. Those that challenged the Settlement before the Supreme Court have twenty-five days to request reconsideration of the Supreme Court’s denial.
~ Lauren Nageotte, litigator at Rose Law Group who represents numerous former NFL players in understanding their rights under the Settlement reached with the NFL.
