Chris Johnson Opens Up About Scary Links Between His ALS Diagnosis & Playing In The NFL — “That Was A Shock”
This article was originally published on Total Pro Sports.
The 2026 NFL season has just started, but not everybody is in the mood for football. Former Titans standout Chris Johnson is one of them.
The 40-year-old is currently battling ALS, also known as Lou Gehrig’s disease. He announced his diagnosis this past summer on ‘Good Morning America.’
Michael Strahan, one of the show’s co-anchors, was blasted back then for not asking Johnson about the link between ALS and football.
“Chris Johnson is dying and he showed up on Good Morning America to tell his story, and Michael Strahan, one of the great cowards on TV in my opinion, sits there and pretends, oh, this is heartbreaking, it’s so sad, I can’t believe this is happening to you, and doesn’t have the courage and the decency and the wherewithal to mention the ties between football and ALS,” Jeff Pearlman of the Sports Illustrated wrote at the time.
Johnson Released A Heartfelt Letter About His ALS Diagnosis
In recent years, more studies have examined the link between ALS and football. According to reports, former football players are nearly four times more likely to develop ALS compared to the rest of the U.S. male population. That means they are also four times more likely to die from it.
As a former football player who has ALS, Chris Johnson wrote a lengthy piece about the disease.
“I’ve seen a lot of neurologists at this point and been to basically every major ALS clinic in the country, and in my experience, as soon as you say you played football it’s like, ‘Ahh, OK.’ Almost like an understanding, you know? I read one study, and from my understanding, it found that former NFL players were nearly four times as likely to develop and pass away from ALS compared with the U.S. male population overall,” Johnson wrote.
“That was a shock. And to be clear, your dad’s not an expert, and that’s just one study, and there might be other environmental factors at play. Anybody can get ALS,” he continued.
Titans Will Honor Chris Johnson
Johnson played for three teams in the NFL. Arguably, his most memorable stint was with the Tennessee Titans from 2008 to 2013. Additionally, he had his best years in football with the team.
And that’s why, on the team’s season opener against the New York Jets, the Titans will induct Johnson into their ring of honor. The memorable event will happen during the halftime festivities.
ALS stands for amyotrophic lateral sclerosis. It is a rare and fatal nervous system disease. Sadly, there is no known cure for ALS, but there are treatments that could improve the quality of life.
