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WASHINGTON (AP) — In a lawsuit filed Tuesday, a group of retired NFL players says the league illegally supplied them with painkillers that numbed injuries and led to medical complications. Eight players are named. A look at some of what each alleges:
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JIM MCMAHON: He says he discovered in 2011 or 2012 that he had suffered a broken neck. He believes it happened in 1993 when his legs went numb after a hit. But the lawsuit says team doctors and trainers never told him about it.
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RICHARD DENT: He describes a daily ritual of a team breakfast, followed by the medications needed to get him on the field for practice. Then, according to the lawsuit, he'd take "downers" to sleep.
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JEREMY NEWBERRY: The lawsuit says he was one of as many as 15 San Francisco 49ers routinely lining up, pants down, for anti-inflammatory shot before games. During games, he would simply ask trainers for medications, with no records being kept, according to the lawsuit.
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ROY GREEN: He developed calcium buildups on his Achilles tendons, but doctors and trainers gave him anti-inflammatories rather than surgery, according to the lawsuit. He ultimately demanded surgery, though the lawsuit alleges that the Arizona Cardinals' general manager pushed back.
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J.D. HILL: He was given "uppers, downers, painkillers, you name it," he said in a statement. He said he became homeless and addicted. "Never took a drug in my life, and I became a junkie in the NFL."
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KEITH VAN HORNE: The lawsuit says he received injections of numbing agents and pills — and often wasn't told what they were.
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RON STONE: He tore his thumb while playing with the New York Giants. NFL doctors administered painkillers instead of recommending surgery, the lawsuit says.
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RON PRITCHARD: He says amphetamines were available in jars in the Houston Oilers' locker room.
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