{"id":879,"date":"2012-06-23T16:10:51","date_gmt":"2012-06-23T21:10:51","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/nflconcussionlitigation.com\/?p=879"},"modified":"2012-06-25T14:10:52","modified_gmt":"2012-06-25T19:10:52","slug":"mike-karney-talks-about-concussions-and-bountygate","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/nflconcussionlitigation.com\/?p=879","title":{"rendered":"Mike Karney Talks about Concussions and BountyGate"},"content":{"rendered":"

Mike Karney retired from the NFL in February, and he just wrapped up a week at the NFL’s Broadcast Bootcamp<\/a>. Karney\u2019s transition to life after the game has been relatively smooth. He and his wife run a successful real estate business in Arizona.<\/p>\n

Karney and I initially started a conversation on Twitter discussing the concussion lawsuits:<\/p>\n

@PaulD_Anderson<\/a> no it didn’t<\/p>\n

\u2014 Mike Karney (@Karney44) June 23, 2012<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

 <\/p>\n

@PaulD_Anderson<\/a> don’t plan on it. It’s def a big problem tho<\/p>\n

\u2014 Mike Karney (@Karney44) June 23, 2012<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

 <\/p>\n

@PaulD_Anderson<\/a> we’re both responsible<\/p>\n

\u2014 Mike Karney (@Karney44) June 23, 2012<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

 <\/p>\n

Karney was en route to California so he told me to call him.<\/p>\n

Joe Horn filed a lawsuit<\/a> against the NFL in December. Karney said that he does not plan on joining the lawsuits, but he is concerned about his future health. \u201cI try to be proactive\u201d and he believes \u201cplayers should seek help\u201d if they are having issues. Karney tweeted this message after learning the news about Seau’s suicide:<\/p>\n

W\/all do respect: RETIRED NFL Players REACH OUT to ANY N EVERYBODY. The pain of being done is forever and YOUR NOT ALONE! More Life to Live!<\/p>\n

\u2014 Mike Karney (@Karney44) May 2, 2012<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

 <\/p>\n

During his last year in the League, Karney sought counseling after feeling down about the lack of playing time. He suggested that the League and NFLPA should provide an \u201cexit symposium\u201d where a player is required to go through a battery of tests before they receive their severance pay. \u201cGuys need to be informed that concussions can have a lasting impact on your health,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

Karney said he only had one documented concussion, but he had \u201ctons of sub-concussive blows.\u201d On numerous occasions, Karney recalls playing with his \u201ceyes crossed.\u201d The problem he said, though, is \u201cyou don\u2019t want to tell a trainer you had a concussion because there is always somebody out there ready to take your position.\u201d<\/p>\n

He thinks the League and NFLPA should adopt a rule that prohibits a player from being cut in the middle of the season due to concussions. He also vehemently disagrees with the adoption of a clause waiving a player\u2019s right to sue the League, saying that\u2019s an example of the NFL wielding its \u201cpower and money.\u201d<\/p>\n

BountyGate<\/strong><\/p>\n

Karney was recently implicated in the bounty gate scandal. According to the NFL\u2019s evidence, a slideshow<\/a> implies that Karney was a named target.<\/p>\n

Karney said he was honored to be on the Saints\u2019 hit list, but the \u201cpersonal information\u201d clearly shows that \u201cthis was orchestrated by management and not the players.\u201d The \u201cpersonal information\u201d relates to the \u201cclassless\u201d move of being released on the night before Karney\u2019s wedding rehearsal.<\/p>\n

As Professor Michael McCann opined<\/a> about the potential legal fallout over bounty gate, the State of Louisiana could brings criminal charges against the Saints coaches and players for (1) conspiracy to commit battery against Karney; (2) criminal negligence and (3) battery.<\/p>\n

In addition, Karney could bring a civil suit against the Saints, Gregg Williams, Sean Payton and\/or any player that committed a tort against him. Karney\u2019s legal theory would be based upon battery.<\/p>\n

A prima facie case for battery requires (1) harmful or offensive contact; (2) to the plaintiff\u2019s person; (3) intent; and (4) causation.<\/p>\n

A battery claim could be filed against the Saints \u2013 who would be vicariously liable for the acts of its employees, i.e. the players \u2013 for intentionally causing a harmful or offensive touching to Karney. Battery does not require actual damages, and punitive damages are available if a plaintiff can prove malicious conduct.<\/p>\n

Moreover, Karney could sue Williams and Payton for battery under a concert-of-action theory, which does not require a defendant to personally engage in the harmful or offensive touching. Karney would just have to show that Williams and Payton aided or encouraged the players to commit the battery.<\/p>\n

The fact that Williams was the ringleader of this system, and his employers allegedly were aware of his actions, bolsters a claim that the Saints ratified Williams\u2019 actions.<\/p>\n

I did not discuss this potential liability with Karney.<\/p>\n

Karney thinks the punishment against the players is completely wrong, but the coaches and management deserved to be hit hard, saying that it was \u201cdriven by the ego and arrogance of Gregg Williams.\u201d<\/p>\n

Although Karney was allegedly targeted, he said it was never acted upon. After watching the game again last night, there was \u201cnever a time that a Saints\u2019 player tried to put an illegal hit on me,\u201d Karney said.<\/p>\n

While playing for the Saints, Karney does admit to a \u201cpool of money\u201d that the special teams would use to help spice up the game. Although a violation of Article 13 of the CBA<\/a>, Karney said the money was rewarded strictly for legal blocks and kick returns. \u201cIt was an intent to motivate, not an intent to hurt.\u201d<\/p>\n

In any event, Karney has moved on and is ready for bigger and better things.<\/p>\n

Karney has a bright future after the game, and I wouldn\u2019t be surprised if we see him as a college football analyst in the near future. Or, perhaps he can replace<\/a> Warren Sapp at the NFL Network.<\/p>\n


\n<\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Mike Karney retired from the NFL in February, and he just wrapped up a week at the NFL’s Broadcast Bootcamp. Karney\u2019s transition to life after the game has been relatively smooth. He and his wife run a successful real estate business in Arizona. Karney and I initially started a conversation on Twitter discussing the concussion […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"ngg_post_thumbnail":0},"categories":[1],"tags":[33,55,5,54,23,4,56],"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/nflconcussionlitigation.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/879"}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/nflconcussionlitigation.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/nflconcussionlitigation.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/nflconcussionlitigation.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/nflconcussionlitigation.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=879"}],"version-history":[{"count":16,"href":"http:\/\/nflconcussionlitigation.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/879\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":897,"href":"http:\/\/nflconcussionlitigation.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/879\/revisions\/897"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/nflconcussionlitigation.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=879"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/nflconcussionlitigation.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=879"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/nflconcussionlitigation.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=879"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}