Study: Up to 98% of NFL Players May Have CTE
Is this a genuine crisis or are alarming statistics skewed by selection bias in brain donation research?
Above: The NFL shield logo on a ball. Image credit: Aaron M. Sprecher/Getty Images
The Spin
Narrative A
The NFL has a serious CTE problem and can't keep looking the other way. The estimates being made based on this latest study are conservative. Kids as young as 5 are still being taught to tackle, absorbing repeated head impacts that cause irreversible brain damage. That's simply unconscionable when flag football exists as a safer alternative.
Narrative B
These statistics are driven by severe selection bias. Brains donated for research almost exclusively come from families who already noticed something was wrong. Star quarterbacks from football's most brutal era are aging just fine, which the doom-and-gloom narrative can't explain. Even the researchers themselves admit the messaging has outpaced the actual evidence.