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Sent: 01-27-16

E-GIANTS
Dave Klein was the Giants' beat writer for The Star-Ledger from 1961 to 1995.
He is the author of 26 books and he is one of only three sportswriters to have covered all the Super Bowls. Dave has allowed TEAM GIANTS to reprint some of his articles.

FORMER GIANT SAFETY TYLER SASH, 27,
FOUND DEAD; AUTOPSY REVEALS CTE

By Dave Klein
It was July of 2012 and the Giants were conducting training camp on the grounds of The University of Albany in upstate New York.

They were reigning Super Bowl 46 champions (seems just like yesterday, doesn't it?) and there was a swagger to the team, a bounce to the steps of the players and - almost unseen - a smile on the face of head coach Tom Coughlin.

There had been some disquieting news, that second-year safety Tyler Sash, a sixth-round draft pick the year before and a member of the Super Bowl champion roster, had been suspended for the first four games of the regular season because a blood test had disclosed the presence of a banned substance, one used in the manufacturing of a drug called Adderall, used to calm down those with anxiety. He has received it from his physician in his hometown of Oscaloosa, Iowa.

Sash was a quiet, intelligent young man with a perpetual smile on his face, and when the suspension was announced, he showed up at training camp anyway, allowed to go through the daily drills and practices and take part in the preseason games. One day during that period, before the preseason schedule kicked in, your reporter ran into him near the student union building.

The perpetual smile was missing. "You heard?" he asked.

"Yeah."

"My family doctor gave me the prescription," he said. "I had to make a speaking engagement in town and I was very nervous about it. He said it would calm the anxiety."

I even spoke to someone at the NFL about Sash's problem, feeling (as he did) that he had been wrongly accused. "Nothing we can do about it," the guy said. "He had the blood test and there it was."

On a Sunday in September, Sash's mother found him dead. He was 27. An autopsy which included brain analysis and which was just recently released showed him to have "acute CTE," the result of too many concussions. Doctors have started to grade the levels of CTE from one to four. Sash recorded a four. But he was only 27.

Adderall is generally prescribed for Attention Deficit Hyperactive Disorder (ADHD), and has been used for years. But Sash also took regular doses of various pain-killers for his shoulder, and that, combined with the advanced CTE, ultimately took his life.

His brother, Josh, recently said he would be hesitant to allow his young sons to play football, and that feeling has been spreading throughout the country. CTE kills and it can only be found during an autopsy. A few more veteran players - notably Junior Seau and Dave Duerson - committed suicide by shooting themselves in the chest, allowing their brain to be intact for the surgical study.

It was way too early and he was way too young, and the NFL should do more and more for its players - current and retired.

EXTRA POINTS - Three Giants have been added to the Pro Bowl this Sunday, quarterback Eli Manning, cornerback Dominque Rodgers-Cromartie and kicker Josh Brown. ... All three were named to replace injured players who were previously voted in.

Carolina is a 5-point favorite in Super Bowl 50, which will be played Feb. 7 in Santa Clara, CA. ... It may well be the final game of Peyton Manning's career, and his brother, the aforementioned Eli, said "it would be nice if he goes out on top" with a Super Bowl ring. ... Baby brother already had two and Peyton has one. ... Bragging rights, anyone?

While the Giants continue to keep silent as to the identity of their new assistant coaches, sources from various outlets indicate that they have hired six - linebackers coach Bill McGovern, offensive coordinator Mike Sullivan (who was quarterbacks coach), quarterbacks coach Frank Cignetti Jr., wide receivers coach Adam Henry (Odell Beckham's position coach at LSU) and offensive line coach Mike Solari.

Defensive coordinator Steve Spagnuolo, special teams coordinator Tom Quinn and running backs coach Craig Johnson appear to have been retained, along with secondary assistants Tim Walton and David Merritt.

Check out Dave's website at E-GIANTS where you can subscribe to his newsletters which run much more frequently than what is available here.
- Team Giants

NOW - Send a request to davesklein@aol.com for a free week's worth of news!

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