Dave Pear's Blog

Thanks to our friend, Jennifer Thibeaux, we have a great collection of photographs from our well-attended Second Annual Independent Football Veterans Conference held April 20 – 22 2012 at The South Point Resort in Las Vegas. Videos and PowerPoints to follow shortly!
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Here’s the slideshow from flickr  (there’s an enlarge button in the lower right hand corner of the slideshow screen if you want to view our slideshow fullscreen; just hit ESC to close fullscreen mode):
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With so many areas to cover this year at our Second Annual Independent Football Veterans Conference, we’ve adopted a broadcast format and assembled discussion panels with audience participation instead of individual speakers for the most part. Each panel will be broadcast as a separate topic covering the most important issues and questions retired players want to know.
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Each panelist will be given an opportunity to talk approximately 5 – 10 minutes about their particular areas of expertise and interest after which 30 – 45 minutes will then be devoted to general discussions and questions from our studio audience and our online viewers. For a list of our panelists and speakers, click HERE. We’ll be posting our Panelists’ Bios shortly.
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All retired players welcome to participate in this live event but be sure to register for your entry pass today - click HERE – and book you flight and room(s) at the South Point as soon as possible! The Conference is open to all retired football players by simply registering to attend. Media and other guests are limited and by invitation only – click HERE to contact us.
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Each panelist will be given an opportunity to talk for approximately 5 – 10 minutes about their particular areas of expertise and interest, after which 30 – 45 minutes will then be devoted to general discussions and questions from our studio audience and our online viewers. For a list of our panelists and speakers, click HERE. We’ll be posting our Panelists’ Bios shortly.
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2012 IFV Conference Schedule

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We have recently read the expose of George Martin and the NFL Alumni Association written by A. J. Perez and Alex Marvez for FOX Sports. We have also read the accounts of the Alumni’s press conference from the Super Bowl; and of their Board of Directors’ support for George Martin.
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I am not a former player and often wonder why and how I got involved in their issues. However, getting to know – and work with – many retired players over the past few years has been a personal and professional highlight of my life and career. I am proud to call many retired players my friends and most of them are a tremendous source of inspiration for me.
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That said, I have thought that I have had something worthwhile to contribute to the cause of retired players and their families – specifically my expertise in disability law. And it is with those thoughts in mind that I became actively involved in helping the NFL Alumni transition from Caring for Kids to a role as the primary advocate for the needs of retired players, their families and their widows.
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You will recall that several years ago, NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell visited several cities to meet with RETIRED PLAYERS ONLY to try to learn what was on their minds. Many of you will recall that Dr. Eleanor Perfetto was not allowed to attend a meeting on behalf of her husband, Ralph Wenzel, who suffers from dementia. You may also recall that I was allowed into the meeting in Dallas – but not allowed to speak. I was very skeptical about what Commissioner Goodell and the NFL were up to.
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Not long after, I got a call from Bruce Laird, President of Fourth and Goal – one of the first retired player advocacy organizations who were raising money on behalf of – and advocating for – retired players. He told me that Goodell had called him and asked if Fourth and Goal would work with the NFL Alumni to refocus their efforts towards retired players and become one unified and representative advocacy organization. As we envisioned it, we would have one truly representative group that would speak on behalf of retired players’ issues – from intellectual property rights to significant pension improvements and much needed disability reform – with both the League and the Union.
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It was a tremendous effort on the part of many men to establish the new Alumni Association and hire George Martin as their executive director. Many of us involved in the effort took a lot of heat from all sides. The PA would not have anything to do with this, as they felt (as many others did) that this was a ploy by the NFL to curry favor with retired players as the League and Union moved towards the new CBA. While the men of the PA had little regard for what I had to say about needed disability reforms (which would only have served to help their members), I continued on, hoping that I would have the opportunity to discuss cases, problems, ideas and solutions with the League or various owners. I pressed on, hoping that Bruce Laird, Jeff Nixon and others well-versed in the pension plan, the CBA and all issues facing retired players, would also have the chance to meet face-to-face with the CBA decision makers.
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It never happened.
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Fast forward to where we are today – a CBA that did not come close to adequately addressing the needs of retired players. As all of you know, those failings are the subject of a lawsuit pending in Minnesota against the Union. While the League and Union think they have a 10-year period of “labor peace” to look forward to, they will clearly be kept busy by retired players who continue to feel left out, bruised and abused – in light of what they did to make the game what it is today and in light of the almost unimaginable amount of money the NFL is now generating.
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The Legacy Fund (anyone get their checks yet?) is but a drop in the bucket of what was needed. The League and Union are now scrambling to decide what to do about the disaster of leaving widows out of the picture.
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Which brings me back to the Alumni Association. What have they done for retired players and their families? Were they a significant role-player in the CBA as we had hoped? Are retired players happy with what they are doing? Has the membership grown or decreased since George Martin was hired? (We hear from a former employee that membership was down significantly but we really don’t know.) I do know that there are a number of NFL cities where there is no longer an Alumni chapter – including here in Atlanta – where there are between 700 and 800 retired players.
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The Alumni has had three major programs – all highly touted: the Satcher Leadership Institute of Morehouse School of Medicine and their mental health awareness program; their partnership with the Gay Culverhouse Player Outreach Program; and the Long-Term Care Insurance program. All of them great, helpful programs. But they weren’t really the Alumni’s – they were the League’s and the Alumni’s role in them appears to be little more than lip-service.
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I am sure that Commissioner Goodell and the League expected the Alumni to be self-sustaining by now. At least when we started down this path, that is what those of us at Fourth and Goal had expected. To the best of my knowledge, they are not. They have been the beneficiary of millions of dollars in “interest-free loans” from the League.
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The point of this letter is that at this point in time, I don’t think it really matters what I think of the Alumni or George Martin’s leadership. I don’t think it really matters what the majority of retired players think about them. And although the Board of Directors is supposed to be in charge, I don’t think it really matters what they think, or how much confidence they have in George Martin and the Alumni’s direction.
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The only one who really matters is Roger Goodell. Is he willing to continue to invest multiple millions of dollars to try to prop them up on their feet – or is it time to close the checkbook and see if they can stand on their own feet?
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John Hogan
Disability Attorney
Retired Player Advocate
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FOX Sports‘ A.J. Perez and Alex Marvez kick off Super Bowl week with a scathing exposé on the inner workings of the NFL Alumni and its Executive Director, George Martin.
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One question we keep wondering about: Just exactly how many retired football player members does the NFL Alumni actually have? The one thing even the NFLPA manages to be transparent about is its membership roster and they even provide an online list for all to see. But George Martin and his management team continue to cite numbers in the thousands, claiming that their membership is the largest collective group of retired players. But this article cites around $80,000 collected from May through September 2011. At $100 per member, simple arithmetic tells you that’s 800 members. But when you factor in the $5,000 fees from the remaining chapters who may have sent in their dues during that same period, one has to wonder how much of that $80,000 actually comes from individual memberships? We’ve heard from all too many sources that the membership has dropped to below 500 actual dues-paying retired players, with the remaining members classified as “Associate Members” that include fans and other non-retirees. Heck, if the NFL has given the Alumni $4 million in interest-free loans since George Martin took over, maybe it might have been cheaper to just pay each of the estimated 15,000+ retired players (just one estimate) $100 apiece to be members of the Alumni?
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Here’s a yearend update from Hausfeld LLP and Zelle Hofmann including articles from disability attorney John Hogan and George Visger.
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We’ve uploaded their newsletter to Scribd for easy viewing and to make it downloadable for printing. You can also click the Enlarge icon in the center of the menu at the bottom of the viewing screen to go Full Screen for easier reading (and just hit the ESC key to close):
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The Voice – NFL Retiree Newsletter, Vol 1, Issue 2
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Some of you have already received your first letter from the NFL/NFLPA Benefits Office. The letter appears to be a standard letter that declares how your funds will be paid out by the Bert Bell/Pete Rozelle NFL Players Retirement Plan. (Thanks to John Griffin for getting a copy of his letter to us so quickly!)
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Attorney John Hogan was gracious enough to do a quick review:
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“I don’t see any release or anything suspicious here.  Just make sure that you answer all the questions honestly and accurately.”
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We’ve uploaded a copy of the 2-page form to Scribd for easy viewing and to make it downloadable for printing. You can also click the Enlarge icon in the center of the menu at the bottom of the viewing screen to go Full Screen for easier reading (and just hit the ESC key to close):
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NFL/NFLPA Legacy Fund Benefits Letter
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EDITOR’S NOTE: Several weeks back, the NFLPA put out a request to local chapters for three questions to send along to their big meeting in Washington DC. Disability Attorney John Hogan actually had a few questions to point out in the new CBA. John also has some observations from a recent case that was “approved” by the Disability Board:
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1. The CBA contains some significant changes in disability – specifically, there will no longer be a requirement to show that your disability is ALL football-related. Why weren’t these changes made retroactive so that guys who are disabled but denied football degenerative might be able to get a better deal?
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Over the past couple of weeks, absolutely nothing of any serious significance or substance out of the NFLPA regarding retired players pensions especially that new Legacy Fund, other than a lot of the same chest-thumping and empty rhetoric that everyone has been hearing since the lockout ended late this summer. It would certainly seem like the lawyers have taken over once again and put out that Say Nothing Memo.
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There was a meeting of the Seattle Chapter (probably much like other chapter meetings across the country) where the usual 8 members – out of approximately 48 NFLPA members listed in the Seattle area – showed up and voted on a few things that we’re sure will make a huge difference to all retirees: The meeting introduced some Business Opportunities (Hair Products!), the Touchdowns for Homes Programs, as well as some discussion on the School of Legends program. We also finally have some backhanded acknowledgment from the NFLPA HQ about loss of hearing from football (a shiny new discount hearing aid program!).
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EDITOR’S NOTE: We just received an update from disability attorney John Hogan on another of his recent disability applications on behalf of another retired football player. He also included a copy of the Disability Board’s short 3-page boilerplate ruling.
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Attached is a recent decision I received from the Bell/Rozelle NFL Player Retirement Plan’s Disability Initial Claims Committee (DICC) finding that a former player was entitled to Inactive Benefits. (It was filed prior to Sept. 1st, so the new CBA rules do not apply and we are seeking Football Degenerative benefits.) continue reading »

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Over the past four and a half decades I have witnessed many, many, many, many acts of injustice, chicanery and dishonesty. Some of these acts occurred on the fields and arenas in sport (as a player, teammate and coach), some in the halls of justice, some in the media and press and others in the avenues of everyday life. But never in all my years of experience and knowledge as an athlete, coach, prosecutor, judge, attorney, teacher, professor, journalist, author and rights advocate, have I ever witnessed such open acts of deliberate manipulations of the truth, excessive greed, conscious indifference, breach of trust, conflicts of interest and cowardice as I have in observing the conduct of Gene Upshaw and DeMaurice Smith and their cronies.
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Mr. Smith’s conduct - which we will call at this time, “legal crimes” – are of a great intensity. That is because he appears to have consciously misrepresented his intentions and the facts to the public, the press and the media and deliberately pulled on the heart strings of those Pre-1993 retired NFL players by promising effort and commitment at a level he never intended to perform.
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Certainly the results of the 2011 version of the Collective Bargaining Agreement, as it pertains to the Pre-1993 retired NFL players, was not within light years of the satisfactory conclusion DeMaurice Smith led the retirees, press, media and public to believe. In fact, it was a smoke screen of a disingenuous effort to placate society and discard the heroes of the game like an old shoe who no longer had a sole/soul to stand on. Since that dismal day, very few press or media or others have sought to inquire with any in-depth scrutiny, the true determination of the so-called efforts that DeMaurice Smith made for Pre-1993 retired NFL players (while allegedly negotiating for benefits on their behalf). Some reporters, oblivious to the reality of the true finding, actually praised the pathetic result.
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Without a doubt, Gene Upshaw was a disgrace as an advocate for pre-1993 retired NFL players. Anyone with half a brain and a conscience knows that. It is an inescapable truth. Jimmy Hoffa could have taken lessons from Upshaw (and his advisors) on how to legally divert millions of dollars into their own greedy hands to the detriment of those who put him in the trusted position as Executive Director. If you will recall, Dick Berthelsen (former interim Executive Director NFLPA and NFLPA General Counsel) said that “whatever Gene is getting paid, it’s not enough.” How much did you get paid to say that, Dick? Remember – at his death, Upshaw left his heirs an estate filled with millions of dollars in real property, luxury cars, extremely valuable personal property and, to our knowledge (at this time), legally diverted funds (from the union marketing company and the NFLPA) easily exceeding $15 million in deferred compensation (according to Washington Post reporter, Tom Jackman, the closer calculation is approximately $19.7 million!). Apparently, the person who was sitting as the Acting Executive Director at that time was… you guessed it: the infamous Dick Berthelsen.
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Although at this juncture, we could assume DeMaurice Smith has yet to legally divert the enormous wealth Upshaw accumulated so slickly, his conduct is – in the full scope of the events at hand – even more despicable and deplorable than Upshaw. However, let’s not forget: DeMaurice Smith has already made millions since starting his position as Executive Director of the NFLPA. Upshaw, despite his many times in promising to help them, made it clear to the pre-1993 retired players who he really worked for and who had the power to fire him (and it wasn’t retired players.). Many retired players believed that Gene Upshaw was an arrogant and untrustworthy individual. Why then is DeMaurice Smith’s conduct even more despicable and more deplorable than Upshaw (however, others may still say that is a debatable question)?
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Here’s why: DeMaurice Smith is a former United States Attorney.
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However, in a broader reality, DeMaurice Smith portrayed himself as much more than just an attorney. DeMaurice Smith emphasized that he was a former Assistant United States Attorney having served under the present Attorney General of the United States. Therefore, it can be assumed, Smith became the Executive Director due to his employment under Attorney General Holder and the sense of integrity and expected “shroud of trust” that position exudes.
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Therefore, let us unequivocally state, as it pertains to pre-1993 retired NFL players, DeMaurice Smith took the position as the Executive Director of the NFLPA under a cloak of hope and trust which we believe he has openly and secretively betrayed.
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That “shroud of trust” has been torn!
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There is nothing more despicable and deplorable than to betray a trust to those individuals whom you, Mr. Smith, are alleging you were empowered to protect. That betrayal becomes metastasized when it is inflicted upon many who are old and virtually defenseless. Do you get that, Mr. Smith?
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DeMaurice Smith’s alleged attempts at negotiating benefits on the behalf of pre-1993 retired NFL Players was more than a sad joke. It appears to have been a calculated deception to avoid turmoil during a time when an appearance of a unified front was a vital element of a plan to achieve the goals he was truly seeking. It appears that Smith’s agenda was to resolve the major issues regarding the active NFL players while simultaneously using the pre-1993 retired players’ concerns of inadequate pensions, inadequate health insurance and virtually unachievable disability benefits as sacrificial bargaining chips. America – in the legal profession, that is a crystal clear example of having the appearance of a conflict of interest. Ask Mr. Smith.
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If DeMaurice Smith had done as he preached – “ONE TEAM” – then all that has happened since he took office would be diametrically different. Presumably, Berthelsen would have been fired the first day Smith took office. Tom Condon’s (Upshaw’s attorney/agent) influence on all matters relating to the marketing company and the union would have been terminated. Furthermore, a new Disability Board would be established (minus the trained seals appointed by the union leadership) with qualified members (that had no ties to the members, their agents, the union leadership and/or the teams) being a prerequisite for service.
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Let us re-examine and re-visit the Tammany Hall-like mentality of Mr. Smith for new readers and the peanut gallery and refresh the memories of the press and media as well as current and retired NFL players:
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As previously reported: “Mr. Smith has swept under the rug a $28 million dollar judgment against his predecessor’s leadership for breaches of conduct and fiduciary duty, $21 million of which was punitive. Yet, Smith approved the settlement agreement on damages and has rewarded those duty-breachers instead of giving them pink slips.”
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A huge problem is the virtual sole-proprietorship manner that the NFLPA marketing company is operated. If you will further recall, the former Assistant Executive Director of the NFLPA, Doug Allen (Upshaw’s sidekick), who also assisted in directing the operation of the NFLPA marketing company, had his gross pay increased from $446,281 in 2006 to $1.9 million in 2007. Allen’s wife saw her pay double to $633,534. Allen’s boss Upshaw had his income increased to $6.7 million. Over the years, how much unjustified self-enriched compensation (due to legal manipulation) has been paid to union leadership and their cronies to the detriment of the union membership (especially those with inadequate pensions and/or physical disabilities)?
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In 1982, that small band of brothers that compelled the ending of the labor strike did so because they had a unified purpose with an impenetrable sense of integrity and resolve. At that time, the union leadership didn’t even have a semblance of a believable strategy or an appearance of being reliable to those they were representing. In fact, they appeared arrogant, unfocused, incompetent and self-serving. Their true place in the end-game negotiations of that year of embattlement became a HUGE inside joke. They became a bigger joke 5 years later during and after the demise of the 1987 strike.
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As in the Dallas Morning News sports editorial dated July 11, 1982 titled “Garvey Garbling Player Issues” the writer specifically and most accurately fore-warned the following: “The union is supposed to protect the players from management; who will protect the players from the union?”
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Now the joke is on all of those individuals who allowed those decertified union leaders of the failed 1987 strike to re-establish themselves in the early 90’s. Since that time, they have finagled their way in to a flow of cash and perks that have virtually remained unbalanced and unchecked for nearly twenty years.
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Presently, a lawsuit is pending in the federal court of Minnesota seeking that unified purpose and a unified goal that existed for that cadre of players in the pivotal altercation of 1982. The same is possible today. However, one must learn from past successes and past blunders.
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In 1944, Allied Supreme Commander Dwight “Ike” Eisenhower had to forge an alliance among many factions and many different cultures and temperaments to achieve victory against the Nazis. It wasn’t easy! Too many people were concerned more with who got credit if they won than for achieving a joint victory. It took a strong leader to voice a firm unified front with little or no compromise.
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Today’s interested parties have an opportunity to pull together behind the efforts of their attorneys and fellow brethren to stop the flow of union monies away from their constituents while seeking and achieving adequate pensions and proper health and disability benefits for ALL.
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Unfortunately, as in 1944, Pre-1993 retired players are immersed in a similar situation. There are too many people concerned on who is going to get us to the goal line rather than getting OVER the goal line. Now is the time to truly unite. Set aside your ego and cease the childish statements of whose lawyers have done this and how many players are backing our group which is more than your group. Enough already!!!
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As of the date of this editorial, I have not met any of the attorneys who are working on behalf of the retired players. However, I have met John V. Hogan several times. He is a brilliant attorney with a sense of integrity and compassion that has no equal. So I would ask him what he believes should be the most effective avenue of pursuit. At this time, I believe that if Michael Hausfeld has matters in place to achieve an aggressive stance of attack, then it is time for the formation of ONE TEAM. But that attack MUST achieve distancing pre-1993 retired players from any control or influence of the NFLPA. Remember: The verdict from the Adderley Lawsuit clearly established that the NFLPA leadership cannot be trusted.
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Additionally, I also believe that this matter is a battle that requires a passionate communicator in the Court of Public Opinion and NOT just in the Court of Law. Based on all of the above and more, that is an issue that must be addressed NOW!
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It is the belief of many that the reason DeMaurice Smith has been dodging questions and laying low, since the apparent resolution of the CBA, is because he knows what he has done, or shall I say, has NOT DONE and he knows that he does not have the guile or knowledge to bear close scrutiny in a public forum. Check him out, he yells when he wishes to show concern for those he has no concern for and leaves, without directly answering a question, when he has no evidence to support his position. At the Santa Clara Law Symposium, when it came to the latter, that is exactly what he did.
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When questioned by Mike Francesa (of The FAN in NYC), Smith made statements that were clearly misleading and flat out inaccurate. But Mike, at no fault of his own, trusted that Smith wouldn’t possibly state something on the air that was blatantly misleading.
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Smith knows that he could not get away with that garbage with someone who could regurgitate the facts and law every time he uttered unsubstantiated remarks. If Smith were to appear in a debate on the issues (where he could not walk away without people knowing he was hiding something) with all the misstatements he has made, it would be like shooting fish in a barrel with a twenty-gauge shotgun with unlimited shells.
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It is time to get behind each other as “ONE TEAM” and leave no soldier (player) behind, no matter what. Show DeMaurice Smith what the term “ONE TEAM” was meant to mean. Only a man who has fought the good fight while standing shoulder-to-shoulder with them could sense that camaraderie.
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I did.
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Only a man with a clear conscience would know that feeling. I guess that leaves DeMaurice Smith out.
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I rest my case.
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Spencer Kopf
Joe DeLamielleure-HOF
Elvin Bethea-HOF
Leroy Kelly-HOF
Lem Barney-HOF
Reggie McKenzie
Billy Joe DuPree
Fred Dean
Art Still
Isaac Curtis
Jim Breech
Jeff Yeates
Chuck Ramsey
Dermontti Dawson
Dave Pear
John V. Hogan
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Spencer Kopf has been a licensed attorney in the state of Texas for 34 years and offers expertise in the areas of corporate law, criminal law, sports and entertainment law, civil litigation, and contract negotiations.
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At the age of 16, Spencer attended the University of Pennsylvania as a superior high school student. He attended Oklahoma City University on an academic and debate scholarship where he earned a B.A. and his Juris Doctorate. In 1982, he was appointed to the bench as a Municipal Court Judge in Collin County, and three years later, elected by his judicial peers to serve as the president of the Texas Municipal Courts Association – the first Municipal Court Judge from North Texas to be so honored. At 35 years old, Spencer was the youngest judge to ever serve in that capacity. He was also unanimously nominated by the Supreme Court of Texas to serve on the Judicial Qualifications Review Commission.
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He has represented more than 100 professional athletes and at one time, represented one-third of the Dallas Cowboys roster as their attorney. He has also served as a guest legal sports analyst for the Dallas Morning News.
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Duerson Apparently Did Not Review Andrew Stewart NFL Disability Claim

Posted with the express consent of Irv Muchnick:
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Published September 10th, 2011
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On August 16, FoxSports.com’s Alex Marvez broke the story of a lawsuit against the National Football League’s Bert Bell/Pete Rozelle Retirement Plan, in federal court in Maryland, by retired player Andrew Stewart. I discussed the case on my Concussion Blog – click HERE.
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The premise of Marvez’s piece aligned with an important investigative angle of this blog: that the Stewart suit might reveal more about the work on the disability claims review board of Dave Duerson. But it turns out that, while Stewart’s attorneys have made a lot of progress in getting scrutiny in open court of the board’s inner workings – a very good thing – Duerson himself did not participate in the deliberations of Stewart’s particular case in August of last year.
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The three NFL Players Association representatives on the board for Stewart’s review were Andre Collins, Robert Smith, and Jeff Van Note. “I do not know why Duerson was not on the Board that day,” Stewart attorney Michael Rosenthal e-mailed me.
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According to John Hogan, who represents many retired players from his disability law practice in Georgia, retirement board members occasionally designate others as proxies, and that is probably what happened here. The whole process is mysterious and secretive, which is why we need the drip-drip-drip of additional cases to break down the NFL and NFLPA’s limestone wall. (The judge in the Stewart case has set a trial date, though he has not yet ruled on whether to permit live testimony. But the court seems to be leaning that way.)
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As I’ve said many times, perhaps the most tumultuous litigation for the football-concussion system isn’t by professionals. Rather, it involves youth athletes and the financial exposure of public schools for disabling injury and wrongful death. Without tackle football mania at the grassroots, the $10-billion-a-year NFL cannot recruit, inculcate, and thrive. We already know of one lawsuit in New Jersey by the family of a kid who died from a second concussion after being cleared to return to play – with the help of NFL and World Wrestling Entertainment witch doctor Joseph Maroon’s “ImPACT concussion management” software.
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Irvin Muchnick is author of CHRIS & NANCY: The True Story of the Benoit Murder-Suicide and Pro Wrestling’s Cocktail of Death (2009) and WRESTLING BABYLON: Piledriving Tales of Drugs, Sex, Death, and Scandal (2007). He is a widely published magazine journalist and has appeared on forums as diverse as Fox News’ “O’Reilly Factor,” National Public Radio’s “Fresh Air with Terry Gross,” and ESPN’s “Up Close.” Muchnick is lead respondent in the landmark U.S. Supreme Court case for freelance writers’ rights, Reed Elsevier v. Muchnick.
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BeyondChron contributor Irvin Muchnick has launched his new website and blog “Concussion Inc.”. You can also find Irv on Twitter at http://twitter.com/irvmuch.
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Guys,
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A few comments from the notes I took down during the Santa Clara Law Sports Law Symposium:
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I was able to catch De alone for a few minutes outside at the coffee urn. He acted like he didn’t know who I was. Maybe he doesn’t??? In any event, I told him that I would really appreciate the opportunity to sit down with him and discuss disability. He told me to send him an e-mail!
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I received compliments from at least two guys who were amazed that I could hold my tongue during my presentation! I did directly ask him one question in my presentation – and he never answered it. It was about the new neuro-cognitive benefit – which I think is more PR or window dressing than a measure which will actually help any retired players.
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I thought he was taking down a lot of notes during my brief presentation – in fact, one of the audience members said that he was. However, when I looked over at him after I was finished, all I saw on the paper were doodles!
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De was the keynote speaker before our panel – the topic was concussions. However, other than saying that concussions were the NFL’s most significant health issue in the past five years, he did not speak at all about concussions. Rather, he said, “We need a broader discussion on health issues…(including) diabetes and heart disease… (as well as obesity).”
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One former player said that his talk was more like a commencement address, as it was filled with generalities and platitudes: “Our proper goal should be what is right and what is fair.” (Duh!) He also said to be, “…radical in your thoughts, unyielding in your criticism, with the goal of seeking justice.”
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Someone in the audience called out “My cow died!”
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De continued, unfazed, until the guy yelled out again “My cow died!”
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Somewhat rattled, De asked “What do you mean?” To which the heckler replied “I don’t need your bull anymore!”
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Now I can Dig That!
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Not a word about retired players. Not a word about the Legacy fund. Most unfortuately, there was no time for questions and De made a dash for the door with Delvin Williams and Irv Muchnick trying to ask him questions.
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Well, at least he showed up…
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John Hogan
Disability Attorney & Retired Players Advocate
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Posted with the express consent of Irv Muchnick:
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Notes on NFLPA Boss DeMaurice Smith at Santa Clara Sports Law Symposium

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EDITOR’S NOTE: Thursday Evening – Irv Muchnick was one of the journalists attending the symposium and provides some notes about confronting DeMaurice Smith on Dave Duerson’s votes while on the Disability Board. Read his post by clicking HERE.
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Will wonders never cease? NFLPA Executive Director DeMaurice Smith actually showed up this year for the Second Annual Santa Clara Law Sports Law Symposium. (Hey – we always gotta give credit where it’s due!) If you’ll recall, Smith was a very prominent no-show at last year’s symposium, citing “personal reasons” for not appearing. Disability attorney John Hogan is there again this year, along with retired players’ attorneys, Michael Hausfeld and Shawn Stuckey. Apparently, De Smith is the keynote speaker on sports concussions and John Hogan and Shawn Stuckey will be two of the panelists. Hall-of-Famer Jim Brown is the Special Guest this year. Click HERE to visit their site and look over the speaker list.
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John has also provided us with an advance copy of his symposium White Paper: Concussions, Brain Injury and NFL Disability. This 23-page document is one of the best encapsulated overviews on brain injuries and how the NFL and the NFLPA is dealing (or not) with the long-term effects of concussions and the subsequent long-term needs of its former employees. This is a must-read for everyone.
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We’ve just uploaded a full copy of John Hogan’s document to Scribd for easy viewing and to make it downloadable for printing. You can also click the Enlarge icon in the center of the menu at the bottom of the viewing screen to go Full Screen for easier reading (just hit the ESC key to close):
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John Hogan Santa Clara Sports Law Symposium Paper
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EDITOR’S NOTE: Disability Attorney John Hogan is in flight on his way once again to the Second Annual Sports Law Symposium being held at Santa Clara Law campus. This year’s theme will cover Intensifying Sports Law Issues: Concussions, Steroids, Labor Strife and the Use of Player Images. You can visit their Symposium page by clicking HERE. Some of you may recall that DeMaurice Smith, Executive Director of the NFLPA, was invited to speak at last year’s Symposium but turned out to be a no-show (for “personal reasons” – you can read that post from last year by clicking HERE). Well, John Hogan and a few other attorneys are also attending this conference with questions in hand on behalf of the retired football players that Mr. Smith is supposed to be representing. Wonder if he’ll have another excuse not to show up again this year? Great example for the current players, DeMaurice: If you don’t like the team you’re playing against, just don’t show up… Guess that’s why they pay you the big bucks.
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Meanwhile, John has taken more time to look over the new CBA and has additional observations to report while in mid-flight. It’s interesting that with so many experts and big mouths over at the NFLPA, the silence is absolutely deafening as we continue to miss one deadline after another on providing more clarification and details on key issues that matter to retired players issues. Here are John’s latest findings:
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I’m on the plane just entering California airspace now. It will be interesting to see if De Smith shows up at the Symposium this year.
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I’ve finally had a chance to read the new CBA disability provisions in greater detail and the best way I can sum them up is that if you haven’t been screwed yet, you might be OK. If you’ve already been screwed, there are no remedial provisions.
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I do not understand the new neuro-cognitive disability benefit or who they expect it will help. You have to be vested; you CAN’T be on LoD or Total-and-Permanent AND you have to be under 55! I guess it might be available for some guys who are still working but who can work with a cognitive impairment? (Other than as a fiduciary of the Plan and/or sitting on the Retirement Board? And even that was part-time work.)
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Also, as I have previously indicated, this $30,000 earnings provision will be more of a problem than a help. Do you realize that $30,000 per year equates to a full-time job at $15 per hour? How many guys who have been (or will be) denied disability because they supposedly could do some simple sedentary work would have been able to find an unskilled sedentary job that paid (or pays) that much? Will they continue to reject disability applications out of hand without finding out some information about the work? If a guy is working, but earning less than $30,000 – will they even process his application?
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John Jogan
Disability Attorney
Retired Football Players Advocate
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