Concussion, the film about the NFL’s attempted cover-up of the damage that football does to the human brain, has had to defend itself against allegations that it pulled punches, but now it’s taking criticism in the other direction, from someone very close to the subjects of the film.
Former Minnesota Vikings running back Robert Smith is a football analyst for ESPN, but he has also served on the NFL’s disability board, which works in conjunction with (but not in service of) the NFL in doling out money to former NFL players with disabilities stemming from playing the game. Dave Duerson also served on that board, before he committed suicide (by shooting himself in the chest so that his brain could be studied for signs of CTE), and he’s portrayed in the movie as an unsympathetic figure. Smith vehemently disagrees.
#ConcussionMovie smears Dave Duerson and all of us who serve or served on disability board. Filmakers are cowards to lie about a dead man.
— robert smith (@Robert26Smith) December 26, 2015
It's illogical, nonsense to attack former players on that board. We care for every player and case we hear. We follow the law as fiduciaries
— robert smith (@Robert26Smith) December 26, 2015
I worked with Dave on board- angers me his family being put through this after all they've suffered. Causes aren't worth sacrificing truth
— robert smith (@Robert26Smith) December 26, 2015
It does seem unfair that Concussion would lump the disability board in with the NFL higher-ups who, among other offenses, funded bogus studies downplaying the effects of traumatic brain injuries on players. The board on which Smith served was concerned only with matching funds to players with medically proven disabilities. And Smith cites League of Denial, the PBS documentary that criticizes the NFL severely, to make his point.
"League of Denial" shows documents from ~ 2000 with disability board concluding that long term effects of head trauma were real.
— robert smith (@Robert26Smith) December 28, 2015
Our initial inclination will always be to have skepticism of an ESPN employee’s statements, considering the tight relationship between the network and the NFL, but Smith spoke passionately in a way that doesn’t seem like he’s representing ESPN’s opinions. Surprisingly, we’re inclined to agree with Smith that the movie was unnecessarily harsh to a man who knew firsthand how devastating the effects of CTE can be.
