Will Smith decided to play Neuropathologist Bennet Omalu in the 2015 ‘Concussion’ film. A Nigerian-American who has been at the forefront of CTE injuries in the NFL for many years. He recently begged quarterback Tua Tagovailoa to make the tough decision to retire from the sport completely. Omalu changed the NFL world forever as he was the first person who spoke against the league’s owners, who had been ignoring the CTE injuries for decades.
Better known as Chronic Traumatic Encephalopathy, is the new condition Dr. Omalu discovered when he was allowed to study the brain tissue of legendary Pittsburgh Steelers center, Mark Webster. The player passed away due to an apparent heart attack but these findings from doctor Omalu painted a much grimmer scenario.
How does CTE affect football players?
The constant bashing of a person’s head causes an irreversible degenerative neuron disorder that inevitably affects a person’s behavior and mental health. Before he died, Webster had chronic pain, depression, an acute addiction to controlled substances, he felt alone, he was up to his neck with debt and stressed about life overall.
Dr. Omalu’s medical findings got him to make an even more through study to another three players who also died at a young age and under similar circumstances. He found even further evidence to support his hypothesis. Justin Strzelczyk died at 36 and Andre Waters died at 44, they were the two next cases in Dr. Omalu’s studies. Other players such as Aaron Hernandez, Junior Seau and Dave Duerson even commited suicide due to CTE.
Omalu begs Tua Tagovailoa to retire
During a recent interview with TMZ Sports, Dr. Omalu spoke against QB Tua Tagovailoa’s decision to continue playing after two incidents on the field. This is what he said: “If you love your life, if you love your family, you love your kids — if you have kids — it’s time to gallantly walk away. Go find something else to do.
“Tua, my brother. I love you. I love you as much as I love my son. Stop playing. Stop. Hang your helmet and gallantly walk away. He should stop. Sometimes money is not more valuable than human life. $20 billion is not worth more than your brain.”
