For the players of the National Football League, the excitement and adulation of fans comes with a price. Injuries are synonymous to professional sports but in football, injuries can get very fatal and sometimes, can result in wrongful deaths.

Brain injury concerns are the hottest topic in the NFL today. With the deaths of several former players and long-lasting injuries to those still alive, many are questioning and suing the league alleging that money was more important than the health of players.

Last week, the lawsuit filed by the family of deceased former NFL star Junior Seau was consolidated with the rest of the more than 1,000 lawsuits filed against the NFL over concussion-related brain injuries. Players are trying to make a push to have the class action case tried.

A federal judge in Philadelphia is presiding and will decide if the class action can proceed. Her decision comes with huge financial repercussions for both sides. It is not expected that a ruling will come out immediately but the case is pretty strong against the league with a large possibility of actually going to trial.

One of the issues of concern contends that the NFL hid facts and failed to protect its players because the sport thrives from the amount of violence played. The NFL explains that they are not at fault and weren’t hiding anything from players who knew well the risks of playing the sport.

Despite the counter-claims, NFL has begun enforcing rules to ensure player safety from concussions and brain injuries, including investing on research to develop better gears. Experts see the moves to be connected to a recent study that ties concussions to brain injuries and caused the suicides and deaths of many former players including a few Hall of Famers.