Ex-NFL Tight End From Philly Believes He Has CTE

Frank Wycheck catches a pass in Super Bowl XXXIV | AP Photo: Susan Walsh

Frank Wycheck, a native of Northeast Philadelphia who played 11 seasons in the NFL, told a Nashville TV station he believes he has CTE.

CTE, or chronic traumatic encephalopathy, is a degenerative disease found in people who have suffered repeated brain trauma. Wycheck, a three-time Pro Bowler best known for throwing the lateral in the Music City Miracle play, tells Fox affiliate WZTV he suffered 25 concussions in his career.

“From 5 until I was done at 33, and I added it up to 297,000 collisions,” Wycheck said. “I was a linebacker and I was a running back, so I was hitting with my head every single time.” He says he suffers from headaches, depression, antisocial feelings, and light sensitivity. “I go into a room and forget why I went there,” he said. Wycheck went to Archbishop Ryan High School in the Far Northeast.

CTE, which was formerly called dementia pugilistica (punch-drunk syndrome), cannot be diagnosed in living persons. Wycheck told ESPN he worries about what the future holds for him. Several former NFL players have killed themselves.

“And that is what I am scared of, that there is something that is going to come over me that is going to make me snap,” he tells ESPN. “I don’t think I am going to do it, but those guys you would never think in a million years would. And that’s the scary part about it. There is no one that can tell you really anything. It’s just, the damage is done.”