Former NFL player Aaron Hernandez had a severe form of the brain disease chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE) when he died earlier this year, a new analysis of his brain shows.
Researchers at Boston University’s CTE Center, who studied Hernandez’s brain, said on Thursday (Sept. 21), that the former New England Patriots player had “Stage 3 out of 4” CTE, with stage 4 being the most severe. The damage seen in Hernandez’s brain was particularly severe for someone his age — at 27, Hernandez showed the type of damage that is typically seen in pro-football players in their 60s, according to the New York Times.
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