Tony Dorsett became one of the first living former NFL players diagnosed with signs of chronic traumatic encephalopathy in 2013, leaving him aware that he will be dealing with a condition that has been cited as a cause of memory loss, emotional outbursts, depression and dementia for others who have suffered it.
Dorsett has been experiencing some of those things for a while, saying at the time of his diagnosis that it’s “painful” for his daughters to say that they’re scared of him at times. During an interview with 1190 The Ticket, Dorsett said that he is still frustrated by his condition but that frustration won’t lead him to throw in the towel when it comes to battling for a better outcome.
“I signed up for this when, I guess, I started playing football so many years ago,” Dorsett said, via the Dallas Morning News. “But, obviously, not knowing that the end was going to be like this. But I love the game. The game was good to me. It’s just unfortunate that I’m going through what I’m going through. I’m in the fight, man. I’m not just laying around letting this overtake me. I’m fighting. I’m in the battle. I’m hoping we can reverse this thing somehow.”
Dorsett said he doesn’t like all of the changes to the game that have been made in the name of player safety because they’ve changed the game from the one he played, but adds there’s “no question about” making those changes if they make life better for players. He also said that he’d still let his son (Anthony Dorsett played eight NFL seasons) play football knowing the potential downside, although he’d pay more attention to the physical toll that the game can take on those who play it.
That’s good advice for anyone’s son and hearing someone like Dorsett talk about life after football should encourage plenty of them to take it.
