Fitzpatrick Speaks on Johnson's ALS Diagnosis, Their Friendship Forged in One Season

Fitzpatrick Speaks on Johnson's ALS Diagnosis, Their Friendship Forged in One Season

Ryan Fitzpatrick, the retired NFL quarterback, has spoken publicly about the ALS diagnosis of former Tennessee Titans running back Chris Johnson, describing a bond that outlasted their single shared season and recalling a signed football - a memento from Fitzpatrick's 100th NFL touchdown pass - as a symbol of that connection. Johnson, one of a handful of players in league history to rush for 2,000 yards in a single season, disclosed his diagnosis in a lengthy social media post that reverberated across the football world.

"He was a great teammate when I got to play with him for the one year, and obviously a super talented guy on the football field," Fitzpatrick said in an interview. "ALS is just such a tough thing to have to deal with, obviously for Chris and for everybody around him. You can just imagine the frustrations of his mind being there but his body starting to fail him and how difficult that is. We're obviously all hoping for the best for him, and all our love and support goes to him and his wife and his family." Fitzpatrick also noted that a close friend from his high school years has been diagnosed with ALS, giving him a personal understanding of the disease's toll on patients and those around them. netball online betting

Johnson played in the NFL from 2008 to 2017, spending the majority of his career with Tennessee before later stints with the New York Jets and Arizona Cardinals. In his social media post, Johnson cited growing research linking repetitive head trauma to ALS and noted that studies have shown NFL players develop the disease at approximately four times the rate of the general population. Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis is a progressive neurological disease in which the brain loses the ability to communicate with the muscles, according to the ALS Association; patients gradually lose the ability to walk, talk, eat, swallow and, ultimately, breathe. There is no known cure.

Fitzpatrick, 43, said he would choose a career in football again despite the documented health risks, while acknowledging that perspective shifts with age. "Football has given me so much in my life that it's something I would do again in a heartbeat," he said, adding that he supports his own children in pursuing the sport. Johnson's diagnosis adds to a widening conversation within the NFL about the long-term neurological consequences of professional play, a discussion that shows no sign of abating as more former players come forward with serious health disclosures.