Dr. Craig Brigham, who has been in the news in the NFL this offseason for giving draft prospect Jarvis Jones a clean bill of health and for getting sued by former player Samari Rolle, was found dead this morning.
The Charlotte medical office where Brigham worked released a statement saying he had died from “causes related to an existing medical condition.”
Rolle, who last played in 2008, sued Brigham for negligence arising from a spinal fusion surgery that Rolle claims was “botched.” Brigham was expected to be in court this morning for opening arguments in Rolle’s lawsuit.
Jones, a potential first-round draft pick, finished his college career at Georgia after doctors at USC diagnosed him with a serious spinal condition and urged him to stop playing football. Georgia’s doctors cleared Jones to play, and Brigham issued a report to all 32 teams in March saying that the Georgia doctors were correct and that Jones should be “cleared to play without restriction.”