The Netflix documentary Killer Inside: The Mind of Aaron Hernandez has renewed the fascination with the former Patriots tight end. Not just amongst sports fans but with the broader public. 

And when it comes to the actions that led to his arrest and eventually what caused him to take his own life, I think the operative word in the title of the series is mind. Because I know it’s the one on mine. More specifically the question, how much did CTE influence Hernandez’s actions? 

I would never look to excuse anyone’s behavior and what has been depicted is horrifying. But at the same time, doctors did say he had one of the most severe cases of the brain disease they had ever seen. And when it comes down to it, we are our mind. If something is wrong with your brain, then something is wrong with you, period. 

We’ll never truly be able to quantify what the damage to his did to Hernandez, but I do believe it is an underlying issue in every aspect of his story. Which is why when I talked to Hernandez’s defense attorney Jose Baez, I asked him that central question. Thinking what you want of some of the clients he has represented, it is hard to argue with the logic Baez presented. Because as I stated previously “when your brain is damaged everything goes out the window”.

 So, when it comes to Aaron Hernandez, football is certainly what made him relevant, but what football did to him is relevant as well. We’ll just never know to what degree.