Getty Image / Kevin Sabitus
The NFL is reportedly facing another lawsuit.
The league is still in the midst of lawsuits involving Brian Flores and Jon Gruden.
The lawsuit against the Jets and Giants was recently dropped, but it has now seemingly been replaced by one involving a New York Jets player.
According to the Washington Post, the league is being sued by 10 former players who allege that the league has a pattern of arbitrarily denying disability claims.
Breaking news: Former NFL players sue over disability claims, accusing the league’s benefits plan of a ‘disturbing pattern’ of ‘arbitrary’ denials https://t.co/mocxlxo2xs
— The Washington Post (@washingtonpost) February 9, 2023
The players allege that the league has been sending players to financially based doctors who fail to find that players are disable at exceedingly high rates.
The lawsuit alleges the NFL plan routinely steers players to financially biased doctors, some of whom collect hundreds of thousands per year from the plan, and who at exceedingly high rates fail to find players are disabled. https://t.co/0wm1mM3ScA
— The Washington Post (@washingtonpost) February 9, 2023
They also claim that board of the NFL’s plan has ignored a federal law requiring them to fairly review evidence and instead rely on the opinions on the doctors.
The lawsuit also claims that the plan’s board has ignored federal law requiring them to fairly review all evidence, and instead overly relies on the opinions of these biased doctors, as well as inaccurate case summaries prepared by the plan’s law firm. https://t.co/0wm1mM3ScA
— The Washington Post (@washingtonpost) February 9, 2023
Former New York Jets defensive back Eric Smith is one of the players involved in the lawsuit and he gave his thoughts on it.
I’m trying to look out for all the other guys that have gone through this and gotten the short end of the stick with these evaluations.
After putting their health on the line throughout their NFL careers, these retired players need to know they have a plan in place that will take care of them. Hopefully this lawsuit helps them get it.