A researcher studying the brains of former athletes with traumatic brain injuries opposes the plan to settle NFL concussion claims.
Dr. Robert Stern of Boston University says many of the 76 deceased players with the brain decay known as CTE would not have qualified for awards during their lives.
Stern tells The Associated Press that many of them exhibited severe mood disorders - but not the dementia or Alzheimer's disease covered by the plan.
A judge in Philadelphia will hear final objections next month to the settlement, under which the NFL would pay at least $765 million over 65 years. But nearly 20,000 ex-players must decide whether to opt out by next week.
CTE, or chronic traumatic encephalopathy, can only be diagnosed after death, but Stern believes that will change within a decade.
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