NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) — Chris Johnson has been to every major ALS clinic in the country and seen neurologists respond once they learn he played football. The sixth man to run for 2,000 yards in an NFL season read the study that found former NFL players were nearly four times as likely to develop and die from ALS than other men.
“Obviously, I can’t help but wonder if there’s any connection between my career and where I am now,” Johnson wrote in a letter to his four children published Thursday by The Players Tribune.
Still, Johnson wrote he remains glad for his chance to play in the NFL even as he went from noticing weakness in his right hand last year to needing a computerized speech-generating device to speak this year.
“I wouldn’t trade that journey for anything. Football gave your dad a platform. And now, I’m in a position to use it in a way I never expected," wrote Johnson, who is being inducted into the Tennessee Titans' Ring of Honor at halftime of Sunday's season opener against the New York Jets.
Being able to coach his sons in football brought Johnson joy, and he called it one of his greatest gifts, watching them fall in love with the game that gave him so much while growing up in Orlando, Florida.
“I guess what I want to say to y’all is that…. Your football journey is yours. Be fearless, be you, and don’t let anyone stand in the way of your dreams,” Johnson wrote. "The game is a lot safer now than when I was playing. And hopefully it just keeps on getting safer.
Johnson announced June 29 on ABC’s “ Good Morning America ” that he had been diagnosed with ALS, the fatal nervous system disease a year earlier. In his letter, Johnson said he struggled with whether or not to share his diagnosis, feeling shame that his body was failing him.
Telling his four children about his diagnosis nearly broke him as he tried to be honest yet offer hope.
ALS, which is an acronym for amyotrophic lateral sclerosis and is commonly known as Lou Gehrig’s disease, is a neurodegenerative condition that affects nerve cell communication with muscles throughout the body. The disease leads to muscle weakness and can cause deterioration of the ability to move, speak and breathe.
Now seeing friends and old teammates respond to the ALS Ice Bucket Challenge has made Johnson regret not telling everyone sooner with the money and attention brought to the disease.
“But I don’t know if it would have had the same impact,” Johnson wrote. “People wouldn’t have fully seen what this disease can do, and how quickly it can do it.”
Johnson, a first-round draft pick out of East Carolina in 2008, rushed for 7,965 yards over six seasons with the Titans. He had 2,006 yards in 2009 to earn the nickname “CJ2K."
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