Health · Medical Research · 2 hrs ago
Study estimates 3 in 4 deceased former NFL players had CTE
Researchers estimate about three-quarters of former NFL players who died from 2008 to 2023 had CTE.
The study included players whose brains were donated for research and those whose brains were not.
CTE is a progressive brain disease linked to repeated head impacts, which can occur in contact sports such as football.
The researchers adjusted their estimate because players with dementia-related symptoms were five times more likely to have their brains donated.
Among the 396 players who donated their brains, 362, or 93.5%, were diagnosed with CTE.
CTE can be confirmed only after death, and its associated symptoms can include memory loss, depression, anxiety and poor impulse control.
The researchers said their study has limitations, and the NFL said it works to reduce concussions and head impacts and offers health resources to former players.
A new study estimates that about three in four former NFL players who died from 2008 to 2023 had chronic traumatic encephalopathy, or CTE.
The study, published in JAMA Network Open, used statistical adjustments to estimate prevalence among players who donated their brains and those who did not.
Of 2,362 former players who died during that period, 396 had donated their brains for research, and 362 of those donors had CTE.
The researchers found that former players with dementia-related cognitive symptoms were five times more likely to have their brains donated.
CTE can be definitively diagnosed only after death and has been linked to repetitive head impacts.
- Who
- Researchers from Boston University’s CTE Center studied former NFL players who died between 2008 and 2023.
- What
- The study estimated that about three in four had CTE at death.
- When
- The players died between January 2008 and December 2023. The study was published October 28, 2026.
- Where
- The study used data from a brain bank and National Death Index records. The researchers were based at Boston University’s CTE Center.
- Why
- The researchers aimed to estimate CTE prevalence among a broader group of former professional football players, including those who did not donate their brains.
This story does not have two clearly opposing sides.
A previous study found that at least one in four former NFL players who died between 2016 and 2021 had CTE.
The new study estimating CTE prevalence among former NFL players was published in JAMA Network Open.
- Estimated prevalence
- About 3 in 4 former NFL players who died from 2008 to 2023
- Deaths included
- 2,362
- Brain donors
- 396
- Donors diagnosed with CTE
- 362 (93.5%)
- Higher likelihood of donation
- Players with dementia-related cognitive symptoms were five times more likely to donate their brains
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What people are saying
The NFL continuously strives to make the game of football safer, including by implementing strategies to reduce concussions and head impacts.
The NFL remains committed to ensuring that the NFL community has access to a robust – and expanding – set of resources to enhance their physical and mental well being.