The lawsuit was filed in U.S. District Court and alleges the NFL and team “failed to protect their players' safety, leading to the disease that deprived Hernandez's 4-year-old daughter, Avielle, of her father's companionship.”
The NFL agreed to pay $1 billion to retired players who claimed they were misled about the risks of playing. However, this “loss of consortium” lawsuit is separate from that settlement and the first of its kind.
Neither the team, nor the league, responded to the lawsuit at press time.