NFL to Stop 'Race-Norming' in $1B Settlement of Brain Injury, Concussion Claims

The NFL previously assumed Black players had a lower cognitive function starting point when determining payouts stemming from its settlement of brain injury claims.

On Wednesday, Maryclaire Dale of the Associated Press reported the league pledged to stop such "race-norming" and go back to review past settlement cases for potential bias. Such practices made it more difficult for former Black players to meet the criteria necessary to qualify for the payments.

"The replacement norms will be applied prospectively and retrospectively for those players who otherwise would have qualified for an award but for the application of race-based norms," NFL spokesman Brian McCarthy said in a statement.

Dale noted the announcement follows a civil rights lawsuit, concerns from medical experts and 50,000 petitions delivered by a group of NFL families. The NFL said a recent panel of neuropsychologists that will propose a new testing regime will include three Black doctors and two female doctors.

In 2013, the NFL reached a $765 million settlement over concussion-related brain injuries with retired players. The plan was to compensate and pay medical bills for former players who suffered from dementia, depression or Alzheimer's they said was the result of the repeated blows to the head caused by playing football.

More than 4,500 former players had sued the league for concealing concussion information and profiting from the hits that caused the injuries.

Per Dale, the race norms used in cognitive tests doctors performed for the NFL to determine which former players would be compensated as part of the settlement made it "harder for [Black players] to show a deficit and qualify for an award" than non-Black players.

Dale noted more than 2,000 former players have filed dementia claims, although fewer than 600 have received compensation.