Former NFL players whose neuropsychological test scores were adjusted by race when they applied for disability benefits received notice in 2026 of a proposed settlement under which the NFL player disability and retirement plans would rescore those tests, dating back to January 1, 2012, and pay any resulting retroactive benefits with 6% interest. There is no claim form or cash fund; the court holds the final approval hearing on October 20, 2026, and objecting players are asking it to reject the deal.
What Is This About?
The NFL's player benefit plans have agreed to settle a class action over "race norming," the practice of adjusting a person's cognitive test scores by comparing them with a reference group of the same race. The case is Bailey v. The NFL Player Disability & Survivor Benefit Plan, No. 1:23-cv-02661-JRR, in the U.S. District Court for the District of Maryland before Judge Julie Rebecca Rubin. The court granted preliminary approval on June 1, 2026 and will hold the final fairness hearing at 10:00 a.m. on October 20, 2026 in Baltimore.Two Black former players filed the suit on September 29, 2023 against the NFL Player Disability & Survivor Benefit Plan, the Bert Bell/Pete Rozelle NFL Player Retirement Plan, the 88 Plan and the boards and committees that run them. They allege that when non-white players applied for neurocognitive disability benefits, the physicians evaluating them applied race-based demographic adjustments that assumed a lower starting cognitive baseline for non-white players. Because benefit levels depend on how far a player's scores have fallen from that baseline, the complaint says the adjustment made it harder for non-white players to show the impairment needed for benefits, or for a higher benefit tier. The suit asserts claims under ERISA and 42 U.S.C. § 1981.
The plans deny wrongdoing. In their court filings they say they never directed the independent physicians who evaluate players to apply race-based adjustments, that any such adjustments reflected individual physicians' clinical judgment, and that the plans told those physicians to stop using race as a factor in June 2021. The settlement is expressly not an admission of liability, and no court has ruled on the merits.
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What Would the Settlement Do?
The settlement has no cash fund. Its value comes through the plans' own benefit system, and the main terms, as summarized in the court filings, are:- A permanent, court-enforceable ban on race-based demographic adjustments to neuropsychological tests for any plan participant.
- A Rescoring Protocol under which eligible class members' prior tests, going back to January 1, 2012, are rescored using race-neutral methods. The plaintiffs' expert and the plans' expert each review the results, and a neutral third expert decides where they disagree.
- Retroactive benefits for any class member whose rescored test qualifies him for a new or higher level of benefits, plus 6% simple annual interest. Benefit determinations reached through the process are final and binding.
- A waiver of the plans' statute-of-limitations defenses and damages-limitation provisions for retroactive benefits under the settlement.
- No reduction of any class member's current benefit award, whatever the rescore shows.
The class is defined by players who, among other criteria, underwent neuropsychological testing in connection with a benefits application and had their scores adjusted using race-based demographic adjustments. Identifying them requires reviewing individual claim files. The plans mailed the original notice to 631 class members on June 30, 2026, then found additional class members who had not received it, including some dropped during an earlier de-duplication review. The court approved an amended notice for both groups on September 4, 2026.
How much any individual player gains is unknown. The plans and Class Counsel agree that the settlement's value depends on the results of the rescoring, which has not happened yet.
Why Are Players Objecting?
Objections were due on September 29, 2026. NBC Sports' Pro Football Talk reported on September 30 that more than 100 former players had objected through counsel. Their central complaints are that the deal requires players to release their disability-benefit claims, that it pays no guaranteed money, and that it gives them no way to opt out. The parties asked the court to certify the class under Rule 23(b)(2), the rule for classes seeking mainly injunctive relief, which does not give class members a right to exclude themselves. At least one other former player filed his own protective objection on September 14.The court will weigh those objections at the October 20 hearing when it decides whether the settlement is fair, reasonable and adequate.
The Fight Over Attorneys' Fees
Fees are paid by the plans in addition to, and not out of, any benefits owed to players, but the amount is contested. Class Counsel ask for about $3.79 million in fees for roughly 3,000 hours of work and $253,421.69 in costs, a combined $4.04 million, plus $50,000 service awards for each of the two class representatives. They also want the court to reserve the right to award more after the rescoring is substantially complete, once the value delivered to the class can be measured.The plans oppose most of it. They argue the case was resolved cooperatively without contested motions, that the requested hourly rates of up to $1,600 far exceed Maryland market rates, and that the hours are inflated by duplicative staffing and block billing. They ask the court to cut the remaining hours by half, cap costs at about $151,077, deny any later enhancement, and limit service awards to $2,500 each. The plans point out that the settlement agreement says a reduced fee award does not affect the rest of the settlement.
What Happens Next?
Judge Rubin holds the final fairness hearing at 10:00 a.m. on October 20, 2026 in Courtroom 3A of the federal courthouse in Baltimore. She will decide whether to approve the settlement, rule on the objections, and set any award of fees, costs and service awards. If the settlement is approved, the Rescoring Protocol begins, and any increased benefits flow through the plans rather than through a claims administrator.The race-norming issue first drew wide attention in the NFL concussion settlement, where the league agreed in 2021 to stop using race norming in that program. That separate settlement is covered in the NFL concussion settlement explainer.
Sources
- CourtListener docket for Bailey v. The NFL Player Disability & Survivor Benefit Plan, No. 1:23-cv-02661-JRR (D. Md.), including the complaint (ECF 1), the joint motion for preliminary approval (ECF 79), the preliminary approval and scheduling orders (ECF 82, 86, 91), the fee motion and opposition (ECF 88, 92), and the joint motion for an amended notice (ECF 96)
- Pro Football Talk, NBC Sports — report on the objections, September 30, 2026
Questions
Is there a claim form or a cash fund in the NFL race-norming settlement?
No. The settlement creates no common fund and no claim form. Eligible class members are identified from the plans' own claim files, their prior neuropsychological tests are rescored under the Rescoring Protocol, and any increase in benefits is paid by the plans. Nothing has to be filed to be included.
Can a former player opt out of the NFL race-norming settlement?
The parties asked the court to certify the class for settlement under Rule 23(b)(2), the rule for classes seeking mainly injunctive relief, which does not give class members a right to exclude themselves. The objecting players cite the absence of an opt-out as one of their main complaints.
Could rescoring lower a player's current disability benefit?
No. According to the plaintiffs' summary of the Settlement Agreement, no class member's current benefit award will be reduced as a result of the rescoring, whatever the outcome.
Do attorneys' fees come out of the players' benefits?
No. The Settlement Agreement provides that any fees, costs and service awards are paid by the plans separately and do not reduce benefits owed to class members. The amount is disputed: Class Counsel seek about $4.04 million in fees and costs, and the plans argue for a much smaller award.
Is this the same as the NFL concussion settlement's race-norming fix?
No. In 2021 the NFL agreed to stop using race norming in the separate concussion settlement program. This case concerns the players' ERISA disability and retirement plans, which the complaint says continued to rely on race-adjusted test scores in benefit decisions.
