NFL Brain Injuries: A New Study Underscores the Danger of Playing

News Article from The New York Times: Published August 25, 2026

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The degenerative brain disease known as C.T.E. stalks professional football players. We’ve seen it in the headlines for years, usually attached to a famous name. Hall of Famers like Junior Seau and Frank Gifford had C.T.E. So did the convicted murderer Aaron Hernandez, who killed himself in prison. Repeated hits to the head can cause chronic traumatic encephalopathy, and it can be diagnosed only by examining the brain after death.

An alarming study released today suggests that C.T.E. is not just lurking at the margins, an outlier outcome for the most risk-prone players — in fact, at least 25 percent of N.F.L. players might expect to have it.