Thesis StatementWhat do Jovan Belcher, Ray Esterling, and OJ Murdock have in common? They were all famous football players who commented on their suicide. Each player suffered from what is called chronic traumatic encephalopathy, or CTE. This is a condition in which patients received repeated blows to the head that resulted in concussions and ultimately head trauma. In this research paper, we will review data on the NFL to see if they could have prevented CTE in these players if they had prioritized player safety. According to USA Today (Mihoces, 2013), Jovan Belcher enjoyed playing sports, including wrestling and football. He was drafted in 2009 by the Kansas City Chiefs and defied all odds by being an excellent defensive player. On December 1, 2012, he killed his girlfriend and himself (Mihoces, 2013). His mother is currently suing the Kansas City Chiefs for wrongful death stemming from the numerous concussions he suffered while on the football team (Skretta, 2014). Ray Esterling played for the Atlanta Falcons for many years and retired at the age of 35. At the age of 62, he committed suicide, an autopsy was performed and CTE was found in his brain (Tierney, 2012). His family also opened a case against the NFL for wrongful death. Finally, there was OJ Murdock. He also loved sports. He was a superstar player in his high school and later in college he continued to play. However, OJ Murdock never played in the NFL. He committed suicide while sitting in the parking lot of Middleton High School (ESPN New York Associate Press, 2012). Each player was thought to have CTE and committed...... middle of paper ...... myself suffered from a brain diseasehttp://www.nytimes.com/2012/07 /27/sports/football/ray-easterling -autopsy-found-signs-of-brain-cte disease.html?_r=0ESPN New York Associated Press, 07/30/12O.J. Murdock apparently dies by suicidehttp://espn.go.com/new-york/nfl/story/_/id/8214355/police-tennessee-titans-player-oj-murdock-dies-apparent-suicideJason La Canfora, August 3 , 2012League could suspend players for helmet-to-helmet hitshttp://www.nfl.com/news/story/09000d5d81b6d381/article/league-could-suspend-players-for-helmettohelmet-hitsPeter Berkes August 8, 2013The NFL announces rule changes for 2013 seasonhttp://www.sbnation.com/nfl/2013/8/8/4594316/nfl-rule-changes-2013No author recognized, January 22, 2013Former racing driver designs football helmet safer http://www.examiner.com/article/former-race-car-driver-designs-safer-football-helmet