Former NFL players gather at forum to discuss head injuries

When Eric Hipple was on the wrong end of bone-crushing hits during his NFL career, he wore it like a badge of courage.

Hipple knows better now. After a post-NFL life marked by pain, depression and personal tragedy, the former Detroit Lions quarterback is speaking out.

The 53-year-old was one of about 20 former players who shared their stories during an NFL-sponsored forum Wednesday at the Hyatt Regency Hotel in Detroit. "NFL Community Huddle: Taking a goal line stand for your mind & body" addressed head injuries and mental disorders such as Alzheimer's and dementia.

The risk of memory-related diseases for former players, including Alzheimer's, is 19 times the normal rate for men ages 30 through 49, according to an NFL-commissioned study in 2009.

"Took a lickin' and kept on tickin'," Hipple told The Detroit News, referencing the nickname that he earned during a playing career that lasted from 1980 to 1989. "I actually took pride in that name."

Hipple's body is a walking cautionary tale of the realities of an extended career in professional football. He underwent seven surgeries in his 10 seasons and battled severe depression after his career was done. He was in denial about his head injuries for years, and he dealt with the suicide of his 15-year-old son in 2000.

"Even the best health care in the world doesn't do you any good if you don't use it," Hipple said. "That's the problem with stigma. It stops people from getting the services they need."

The forum featured panelists Dr. David Satcher, a former U.S. surgeon general, former Buffalo Bills safety Mark Kelso, and Sylvia Mackey, wife of Hall of Fame tight end John Mackey.

Sylvia Mackey belives her 69-year-old husband wouldn't have developed dementia had he been better protected during a 10-year career in which the Colts great missed only one game.

Mackey's story prompted the NFL and NFL Player's Association to create the "88 Plan" in 2007 to help support players with dementia and their families. More than $7 million has been distributed through the initiative.

One of the forum's goals is to erase the "tough guy" thinking that leads to long-term issues for pro football players.

"There was a saying, 'You can't make the club if you're in the tub' and you're hurt," former Lions linebacker George Jamison said. "I always tried to get back out there and play."

Satcher believes there has to be a new way of thinking when it comes to protecting the players.

"People take protection of the brain for granted," he said. "Hopefully that will change."

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League, players hold conference call to discuss mediation

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Report: Moss said no to Belichick's offer to discuss contract

New England Patriots coach Bill Belichick was rebuffed by Randy Moss during training camp when he approached the wide receiver about a contract extension, The Boston Globe reported Sunday.

Citing a source close to Moss, The Globe reported the conversation was the beginning of the end of the receiver's days as a Patriot. Once quarterback Tom Brady signed off on the trade, according to the newspaper, Moss was shipped to the Minnesota Vikings.

The source told The Globe that Belichick initially told Moss, who's in the final year of his three-year contract, that he wouldn't be a part of the team's future plans.

But when Moss reported to camp in excellent shape, the source said Belichick reversed course and approached Moss about another contract. Moss apparently told Belichick it wasn't the right time to discuss a deal and that they should talk after the season.

The rest is history. Moss made his now-infamous post-game rant following the Patriots' season-opening victory over the Cincinnati Bengals in which he said he wasn't appreciated, then went without a catch during a Monday night game against the Miami Dolphins three weeks later.

Belichick indicated to reporters earlier this week that Brady didn't have a say in the deal, but The Globe reported that the quarterback "gave the deal his thumbs-up" before it was officially announced Wednesday.

In an interview that aired Sunday on "NFL GameDay Morning," Belichick reiterated to NFL Network's Michael Lombardi that the decision to trade Moss was strictly based on football.

"It was really just a combination of things," Belichick said. "Part of it was Randy, part of it was our football team, part of it was the opportunity to make the trade. Just in the end, when you put it all together, we felt it was the best thing to do for our football team."

Belichick also refuted the notion that he is giving up on a season in which he is fielding a young, developing Patriots defense.

"We're here to win, and that's what we're going to do," he said.

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