Chicago Bears Paid $13 Million in WC Claims to Players

Thursday, March 22, 2018 | 0

The Chicago Bears football organization and its insurer have paid some $13 million in workers' compensation settlements with injured players since 2000, Forbes magazine reported.

The team settled 458 cases, most of them involving former players, including such well-known names as Brian Urlacher, Matt Forte and Devin Hester. Linebacker Urlacher settled for $550,000 for claims filed between 2009 and 2014, the magazine reported this week.

The largest amount for a single injury was $400,000, to wide receiver Johnny Knox for a career-ending spinal injury in 2011. Great Divide Insurance Co. handles workers' compensation coverage for the Bears, the magazine reported.

Some states and courts have attempted to exclude professional athletes from the compensation benefits system. California in 2013 passed a law barring athletes with a limited connection to the state from filing workers' compensation claims. 

Eugene Keefe, a Chicago lawyer who defends compensation claims, said compensation to wealthy athletes is “warping” the system in Illinois.

“It doesn't match reality. And the Bears just don't fight the cases anymore. They settle instead of going to court and making the player a hero,” Keefe told Forbes. 

The NFL Players Association told the Associated Press last year that compensation benefits “provide a lifeline to players whose athletic careers end suddenly.”