Testimony O.J. Simpson gave back in 1970 possibly helped the NFL shrug off concerns of players suffering from CTE for decades.
In March 1970, shortly after winning the Heisman Trophy and being drafted by the Buffalo Bills, Simpson testified in a significant lawsuit filed by a paralyzed football player’s family against a helmet manufacturer, Rawlings Sporting Goods.
The equipment maker was hit with a $3.6 million lawsuit by Ernie Pelton’s family, the first to reach a jury. Ernie once played as a running back for Rio Linda High School in Sacramento, California. However, he became paralyzed from the neck down following a helmet-to-helmet collision in 1967.
Simpson, who first gained recognition as a local hero in San Francisco before rising to national fame, captivated the jury when he defended the use of Rawlings’ plastic helmets, according to the Sacramento Bee.
Simpson, wearing a Rawlings helmet while playing for the Bills, testified in Sacramento County Court, affirming its effectiveness. “I believe in this helmet,” he said on the stand.
When requested to read the warning label inside the Rawlings helmet on the stand, which advised players to “avoid all purposeful contact,” Simpson joked, “I try, but haven’t succeeded.”
During the trial, Rawlings’ lawyers claimed the future of football was at stake. One attorney questioned Simpson on his awareness of the sport’s inherent risks.
“A person would be pretty ignorant if he didn’t know,” Simpson said at the time. “I know every time I get on the field, there’s a chance you can get hurt like the Pelton boy.”
O.J. Simpson Reportedly Signed Autographs for Jurors, Who later Ruled in Favor of the Helmet Manufacturer
Following Simpson’s testimony, the jury requested to have their photos taken with the football legend, as detailed in Melody Gutierrez’s account of the trial for the Sacramento Bee.
Weeks later, the jury delivered a verdict in favor of Rawlings. Simpson, who died on April 10 at the age of 76 and was cremated following his family’s refusal of a brain autopsy to check for concussion-related damage, played a pivotal role in establishing a precedent. This verdict protected the NFL for years from facing consequences linked to chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE), according to industry experts.
“It made attorneys afraid to take on other cases, ” helmet liability expert Kimberly Archie said of the case. “If Pelton won, it would have been devastating to football,” agreed Robert Erb, the CEO of helmet maker Schutt Sports from 2008-2020. “The NFL, NCAA, and high school football had to be relieved,” he added.
Meanwhile, Rawlings ceased helmet production in 2015 due to lawsuits from families of injured youth football players. Around the same time, the NFL began acknowledging CTE, a condition linked to repetitive head trauma. It’s only diagnosable post-mortem and characterized by erratic impulsive behavior.