Ex-NFL Superstar Chris Johnson, 40, Diagnosed with ALS, Can No Longer Speak

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If you have lost a loved one to amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), then you understand its horrors.

More commonly known as Lou Gehrig’s Disease, ALS, in the simple words of the ALS Association, “robs people of the ability to walk, talk, and eventually breathe.”

Monday on ABC’s “Good Morning America,” 40-year-old former Tennessee Titans superstar running back Chris Johnson revealed the devastating news that doctors had diagnosed him with the degenerative neurological disease.

Johnson told “GMA” co-host and Pro Football Hall of Famer Michael Strahan that the diagnosis came out of nowhere.



“There’s no history of ALS in my family,” Johnson said. “My doctors believe my case is what’s called sporadic ALS, which is actually how the vast majority of ALS cases happen.”

“That’s one of the reasons this disease can be so shocking,” the former running back added. “It can happen to someone who never expected it.”

Have you known anyone who suffered from ALS?

Yes: 45% (9 Votes)

No: 55% (11 Votes)

ALS, which has no known cure, also tends to move rapidly.

“It’s continued to progress much faster than I ever imagined. I want people to understand just how quickly ALS can attack your body,” Johnson said. “Just over a year ago, I was picking up my 7-year-old daughter so she’d make a wish with her birthday cake. Today, I couldn’t do that.”

In fact, Johnson’s disease has progressed so rapidly that, roughly a year after his diagnosis, he must speak through a speech-generating device.

Symptoms first appeared when the then-39-year-old Johnson worked out regularly and spent time with his wife and four children.

“I first noticed weakness in my right hand,” he said. “At first, it was little things like my grip didn’t feel right, and I wasn’t as strong as I’ve always been.”

Worst of all, perhaps, ALS offers no hope of recovery.

That does not mean, however, that Johnson has given up.

“Honestly, I don’t know if you ever fully process it,” he said. “At first, you’re in shock. Then you realize you have two choices. You can give up, or you can fight. I chose to fight.”

The former running back also credited his wife, Brittany, and their children with giving him a reason to keep going.

“She hasn’t left my side through any of this,” he said of his wife. “My kids are also a huge part of why I keep going. Every day I wake up wanting more time with them to make more memories and just be their dad. They give me a reason to keep fighting.”

As a dynamic, second-year running back in 2009, Johnson led the NFL with 2,006 rushing yards. He earned the nickname “CJ2K” en route to winning the Associated Press’ Offensive Player of the Year Award.

Known for his deceptive strength, balance, and breakaway speed, Johnson regularly busted loose for long touchdown runs.

On July 4, 1939, first baseman Lou Gehrig of the New York Yankees, one of the best baseball players in history, delivered an iconic speech at Yankee Stadium in New York, declaring himself “the luckiest man on the face of the Earth” and then recounting his many blessings even after doctors diagnosed him with the disease that would bear his name.

Gehrig died less than two years later, on June 2, 1941.

In the spring of 1989, this writer’s 72-year-old grandfather, a World War II veteran, received the same diagnosis. He passed away on Nov. 2 of that same year.

In short, ALS shows no mercy, apart from its relative brevity. We pray, for Johnson’s sake and others, that researchers may swiftly discover or develop a cure.

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Michael Schwarz holds a Ph.D. in History and has taught at multiple colleges and universities. He has published one book and numerous essays on Thomas Jefferson, James Madison, and the Early U.S. Republic. He loves dogs, baseball, and freedom. After meandering spiritually through most of early adulthood, he has rediscovered his faith in midlife and is eager to continue learning about it from the great Christian thinkers.

Michael Schwarz holds a Ph.D. in History and has taught at multiple colleges and universities. He has published one book and numerous essays on Thomas Jefferson, James Madison, and the Early U.S. Republic. He loves dogs, baseball, and freedom. After meandering spiritually through most of early adulthood, he has rediscovered his faith in midlife and is eager to continue learning about it from the great Christian thinkers.