Former Titans star running back Chris Johnson reveals ALS diagnosis
Chris Johnson, the former NFL running back who holds the record for most yards from scrimmage in a single season, has the degenerative neurological disorder amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, commonly known as ALS or Lou Gehrig’s disease.
Johnson shared the diagnosis during an interview with Michael Strahan that aired Monday on ABC’s “Good Morning America.” The 40-year-old father of four spoke in his own voice but didn’t use his mouth — instead, he used his eyes to trigger a device that generated sentences based on recordings Johnson made soon after he was diagnosed last year.
“It’s continued to progress much faster than I ever imagined,” Johnson said of the disease. “I want people to understand just how quickly ALS can attack your body. 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.”
There is currently no known treatment that stops or reverses ALS, according to the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke, and most people with disease die of respiratory failure within three to five years of noticing symptoms (although one in 10 survive a decade or more).
In addition to receiving the standard medication to help slow the disease’s progression, Johnson has been working with neurologist and leading ALS researcher Dr. Merit Cudkowicz. She told “Good Morning America” that Johnson has taken part in a clinical trial for a therapy “that decreases inflammation, and I think that helped him a lot.”
“At first, you’re in shock, then you realize you have two choices: You can give up, or you can fight,” Johnson said. “I chose to fight.”
Johnson’s wife Brittany told Strahan: “We’re still hopeful. We’re hopeful that a breakthrough will happen or … a miracle will happen.”
Selected by the Tennessee Titans at No. 24 in the 2008 draft, Johnson was an instant NFL star. He made the Pro Bowl in each of his first three seasons and was named the league’s offensive player of the year in 2009. Also that season, Johnson led the NFL with 2,006 rushing yards — earning the nickname CJ2K as one of only nine players to have rushed for 2,000 or more yards in a season — and set a record with 2,509 yards from scrimmage that still stands.
Johnson rushed for more than 1,000 yards in each of his six seasons with the Titans, then spent a year with the New York Jets and three more with the Arizona Cardinals before retiring after the 2017 season. He finished with 9,651 yards and 55 touchdowns rushing and 2,255 yards and nine touchdowns receiving.
Titans owner Amy Adams Strunk released a statement Monday morning after Johnson’s diagnosis was revealed.
“Learning this news is extremely difficult, and we will support Chris every step of the way throughout his journey,” she wrote. “We are holding him and his family close, and join our fans around the world in expressing our love for Chris.”
The Jets and Cardinals also released statements expressing their support for Johnson.
While Johnson’s body will no longer allow him to perform a task like gripping a cup, he said he wants people to know that with ALS, “your mind stays sharp.”
“People sometimes look at the physical disability and assume you’re not still the same person inside,” Johnson said. “I still think the same. I still dream. I still love my family. My body just doesn’t cooperate.”