Jamal Lewis, Dorsey Levens File Lawsuit Against NFL over Brain Injuries

The NFL's concussion protocol has once again been put under the microscope, this time by four former players.

According to the Associated Press, former NFL running backs Jamal Lewis and Dorsey Levens are among four players who have decided to sue the league over brain injuries and medical problems they have struggled with since the end of their playing days. The other two former players are Fulton Kuykendall and Ryan Stewart.

The four players claim that the NFL has known of the potential long-term damages of concussions since the 1920s, but kept quiet about it until last year.

"The NFL has done everything in its power to hide the issue and mislead players concerning the risks associated with concussions," reads the former players' lawsuit.

The players argue that the NFL has differed from other major sports leagues in that players with concussions were immediately thrown back into circulation, as opposed to being "shut down" for long periods of time.

The NFL publicly acknowledged the dangers of concussions in June of 2010. Lewis last played in 2009, and Levens retired after the 2006 season. Kuykendall has been out of the league since the mid 1980s, and Steward walked away after the 2000 season.

The news of this lawsuit comes just a day after the NFL told its teams that independent trainers will be assigned to monitor suspected concussions—a decision reached largely thanks to the recent fiasco involving Cleveland Browns quarterback Colt McCoy.

NFL representatives have yet to comment on the lawsuit.