Ex-NFL star Merril Hoge sues maker of Roundup claiming the weed killer led to his cancer diagnosis

Retired Pittsburgh Steelers running back and former ESPN NFL analyst Merril Hoge is suing the maker of Roundup in federal court, claiming the weed killer caused his non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma diagnosis in 2003.

The 54-year-old Idaho native claims he frequently used Roundup on his family farm in 1977, according a lawsuit obtained by the Daily Mail. Now he’s demanding an undisclosed amount of money, insisting that Monsanto, the maker of Roundup, knew its cancer risks. 

Hoge was diagnosed with non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma in 2003 and subsequently  underwent a series of chemotherapy treatments. He has been cancer free ever since.  

The eight-year NFL veteran is now one of 18,400 plaintiffs suing Monsanto, claiming that the glyphosate in Roundup caused non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma.

‘As a result of his injury,’ the suit reads, ‘Plaintiff has incurred significant economic and noneconomic damages.’

In the suit, Hoge accuses Monsanto of negligence and lying about the safety risks of Roundup: ‘Defendant knew or should have known that using Roundup created a high risk of unreasonable, dangerous side effects, including, but not limited to, the development of [non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma].’  

Bayer, Monstanto’s parent company, released a statement Wednesday insisting that 40 years of studies prove that Roundup is safe.

Hoge is now one of over 18,000 plaintiffs suing Monsanto, claiming Roundup resulted in non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma. The 54-year-old said he used Roundup on his family farm in 1977

Bayer, Monstanto’s parent company, released a statement Wednesday insisting that 40 years of studies prove that Roundup is safe: ‘We have great sympathy for any individual with cancer, but the extensive body of science on glyphosate-based herbicides over four decades supports the conclusion that Roundup does not cause [non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma] 

‘We have great sympathy for any individual with cancer, but the extensive body of science on glyphosate-based herbicides over four decades supports the conclusion that Roundup does not cause NHL,’ read a statement from a Bayer spokesperson.

While Hoge’s demands have not been made public, similar lawsuits have resulted in large eight-figure payouts. 

A San Francisco jury awarded a school groundskeeper $289 million in August of 2018, but a judge later reduced that award to $78.5million. Then in March, a Sonoma County, California man whose cancer was in remission was awarded $80 million, which a judge reduced to $25.2 million.

One California couple was awarded $2 billion, but last week a judge reduced that figure to $87 million.

Hoge’s post-NFL career has been somewhat paradoxical, as he has been on both sides of football’s debate over traumatic head injuries and the dangers of the sport.

Primarily known for his years with the Pittsburgh Steelers (right), Merril Hoge’s career came to an end in 1994 after he suffered a pair of concussions while playing for the Chicago Bears (left). Later Hoge won a $1.55 million judgement against the team physician after claiming the doctor failed to warn him about the severity of the concussions and failed to perform a proper exam before clearing his return to the field. Hoge even testified before Congress in 2009 about his history with concussions. Now, though, Hoge is one of the leading skeptics on chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE), the degenerative brain disease that’s been posthumously diagnosed in over a hundred former NFL players

He retired in 1994 as a member of the Chicago Bears after a pair of significant concussions. Later Hoge won a $1.55 million judgement against the team physician after claiming the doctor failed to warn him about the severity of the concussions and failed to perform a proper exam before clearing his return to the field.

Hoge even testified before Congress in 2009 about his history with concussions.

Now, though, Hoge is one of the leading skeptics on chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE), the degenerative brain disease that’s been posthumously diagnosed in over a hundred former NFL players.

In ‘Brainwashed,’ Hoge’s self-published book subtitled ‘The Bad Science Behind CTE and the Plot to Destroy Football,’ he questioned the media and medical scrutiny of the NFL’s concussion crisis.

Hoge believes ‘people who either hate football or are trying to increase their own fame’ are behind a plot to destroy the NFL.

‘You don’t have to go much further than Benjamin Franklin,’ he told the Daily Mail in November. ‘These lawsuits are about suing for money. You’re not suing just for the fun of it.’