So I present something of a new style of writing is we are going to look at the two forces in a story and go down a few points before realizing a couple conclusions. What these conclusions are as follows.
Does the media explain both sides of the story normally when reporting?
What does the information say on the matter?
Who is right if the decision had to be reached now?

The end will follow with who do I believe, what do I believe and why I believe it. It is an opinion piece, but I hope you enjoy talking about this or at least find this interesting.

Brad Culpepper has been making home in the hot water that his time on Survivor. His insurance company says the he is not disabled, and wants their money back because he was on a show where he was obviously well enough to live in the outback specifically on the Blood vs Water season. Sounds pretty simple at the beginning, but is it?

Research: According to the NFL he has nine seasons of experience between the years of 1992 and 2000 as a defensive tackle. He has also experience playing college ball while getting his degree at the University of Florida. After his seasons he began working on another career getting a law firm together and even after six years had no complaints against his firm he helped in the case when the NFL and to set new rules when dealing with concussions. He filed a workers comp lawsuit in 2010 using a supposed loophole as reported by workerscompensation.com, settled it in 2011 for a $175,000 an amount also reported by ABC news.

The Insurance Company working on behalf on the NFL believe that he is not disabled. That his actions have show he is perfectly healthy, and he is committing fraud. They believe that one cannot go on Survivor without being deemed healthy enough, and not disabled and that his actions in achieving an “honorary black belt in MMA” as reported by the Tampa bay Times is more then enough evidence to make him pay it back.

So let us go over the first part. Does the media explain both sides, and I do not think they did but that would be due to the use of silence in media from the insurance company. Insurance companies are usually not very verbal until the last minute.

The information is rather light on his injuries. Maybe, I just didn’t look under the right digital rock, but I do not find any info except vague injuries on his shoulders, head, and knees. What got me though was in the article from the L.A Times it made a note of how he had gone to practice, and doing things to make weight even dealing with pneumonia while playing at least four games. He was quoted as being asked to go do ‘Survivor’ by his wife who had done the One World season. These seasons had been bolded and underlined because the blood vs water gimmick which was the season where relatives or loved ones of past competitors would compete against their more experienced associates. The money he got from his suit with his skill set, and even some of the other things he has done may not have been needed, but that is just a guess. Throughout the articles though he has shown that he likes to push himself, loves his wife, wants to make her proud and even though he has been classified disabled he has not been defining himself by the classification.

In closing in my personal opinion. Unless the insurance company has solid one hundred percent evidence that he lied or he hid something so large that he was clearly not handicapped then I will think that he was in the right, and continue to be there. I also think that if the NFL really thought this was a good idea with as many people that tough out problems on their field since their inception then maybe people should re-think for a just small moment watching a major game coming up.

Here are the articles I looked up to get some information. Give them a read to gather your own opinion. Leave your own ideas in the comments and have a good day everyone.

Phillips, Anna M. “Insurer That Paid Culpepper Disability Claim Accuses Him of Fraud.” Tampa Bay Times. N.p., 16 Sept. 2014. Web. 29 Jan. 2015.

Farmer, Sam. “It’s a Weighty Issue Beyond Steroids.” Los Angeles Times. Los Angeles Times, 07 Oct. 2005. Web. 29 Jan. 2015.

Walser, Adam. “Brad Culpepper Speaks out about NFL Workers Comp Fraud Lawsuit.” WFTS. Scripps Media, 28 Jan. 2015. Web. 29 Jan. 2015.

Galli, Cindy, and Brian Ross. “Ex-NFL Star Sued Over Disability Claims After Athletic ‘Survivor’ Appearance.” ABC News. ABC News Network, 29 Jan. 2015. Web. 29 Jan. 2015.

Wilson, Robert. “NFL Culpepper Suit Highlights Our Warped Interpretation of Disability.” WorkersCompensation.com. N.p., 18 Sept. 2014. Web. 29 Jan. 2015.

“Players.” Brad Culpepper: Career Stats at NFL.com. N.p., n.d. Web. 29 Jan. 2015.

Stroud, Rick. “Former Tampa Bay Buccaneer Brad Culpepper Sues NFL over Concussions.” Tampa Bay Times. Tampa Bay Times, 09 May 2012. Web. 29 Jan. 2015.

Nohlgren, Steve. “Culpepper Kurland Law Firm Long on Image, Short on Trials.” Tampa Bay Times. N.p., 26 Jan. 2013. Web. 29 Jan. 2015.