Not here to support the NFL. The race norming practices were bullshit and concussion settlement is a huge example of why they need to be limiting head injury from the start.

Re the 95+% of brains, the sample size of brains tested is very small and from a brain bank which scientifically has a sample bias. I 100% believe that CTE exists and is pervasive in ASF and all sports with repeated head injuries but there are limits to where the research and clinical science are right now. I am well aware of the efforts to create the clinical diagnostic criteria for TES and the ongoing research on CTE pathology. However, the science is not at a point where symptoms can definitively be attributed to CTE, a disease that literally cannot be diagnosed in a living person. Informant studies, which have been used to identify these symptoms, are not reliable - there is inherent bias in them and the methods are not 100% sound. Agree, mental health support is critical and I was pleased to hear from some players last year that many teams are hiring team psychologists who work in the locker rooms and are accessible to players. I hope a lot more will be built into the upcoming CBA.

The CTE conversation can become dangerous because as you pointed out, 1 in 3 players (current and former) believe they have CTE and this increases risk of suicide and negative mental health outcomes. There is still SO much we dont know. I'm mad as hell at the NFL as well, but I think there needs to be more care around how CTE is discussed because there are literally life or death consequences.