10 NFL Players Infected With HIV

Added: 2026-05-07

[00:00:00]From Jerry Smith who had his sister right there with him when doctors delivered the diagnosis.

[00:00:04]>> Listen, we've we ran all the tests.

[00:00:08]It looks like you have HIV. And it was pretty silent.

[00:00:14]>> To Roy [music] Simmons who came out on national television and only revealed his status years later. To Ray McDonald [music] whose family kept the truth hidden even in his obituary. These are NFL players who were diagnosed with HIV and other serious conditions that [music] many people never knew about. Jerry Smith, Gerald Thomas Smith, known to the football world simply as Jerry, was drafted in the ninth round of the 1965 NFL draft by the Washington Redskins out of Arizona State University. [music] He was a tight end back when tight ends were still mostly expected to be glorified extra linemen who could occasionally catch a pass if a play broke down. Jerry Smith, however, turned the position [music] into a weapon. For all 13 seasons of his professional career, he wore the burgundy and gold, never suiting up for another franchise a single time. He appeared in 168 games, hauled in 421 receptions [music] for 5,496 receiving yards, and scored a staggering 60 receiving touchdowns. A number that [music] became the NFL record for a tight end and held firm for 26 long years after his retirement. He earned two Pro Bowl selections. He was named All-Pro twice. He helped the Washington franchise reach Super Bowl VII in the 1972 season where he was a favorite red zone target of the legendary quarterback Sonny Jurgensen. His reliable hands, his blocking discipline, and his ability to find openings [music] in traffic made him one of the most respected offensive weapons of his era. When he finally hung up his cleats in 1977 at the age of 34, he walked away as one [music] of the greatest tight ends the game had ever seen. But Jerry Smith was also hiding something, something that the macho, hyper-masculine culture of the NFL in the '60s and '70s would have never accepted. He was a gay man.

[00:01:51]>> Talking to Jerry Smith, he always knew he was gay.

[00:01:54]The fear was instilled from a very early age. Everything you want is going to be destroyed if they find out.

[00:02:02]>> He never came out publicly during his playing career. [music] The risks were too enormous, the stigma too suffocating, and the potential backlash too devastating. He kept that part of his life locked behind closed doors, known only to a few trusted friends and confidants. Then, in late 1985, [music] everything changed. Jerry was diagnosed with AIDS, a disease that at the time was [music] essentially a death sentence with almost no effective treatments available.

[00:02:26]>> Listen, we've we ran all the test.

[00:02:29]It looks like you have HIV. [music] And it was pretty silent.

[00:02:35]>> And in a decision that stunned the sports world, he made a choice that no professional athlete in any sport had ever made before. In an August 1986 [music] interview with the Washington Post, he publicly disclosed his diagnosis, becoming the first professional athlete ever to announce that he had AIDS. His reason was simple. [music] He wanted to raise awareness and help reduce the stigma. Just two months later, on October 15th, 1986, Jerry Smith [music] died at Holy Cross Hospital in Silver Spring, Maryland at the age of 43. His funeral drew 23 of his former teammates from the 1973 Super Bowl squad.

[00:03:07]Posthumous accounts from other former players, including David Kopay, confirmed what had been whispered for years. Jerry was indeed [music] gay, but he had been unable to live openly during his lifetime because of the era he played in. If Jerry Smith's story is a quiet and tragic one about courage at the end of life, but HIV wasn't the only health battle some NFL players had to deal with. Because for others, it was different diagnoses that still [music] carried stigma, silence, and serious consequences.

[00:03:33]Michael Vick. He was the number one overall pick in the 2001 NFL draft, selected by the Atlanta Falcons out of Virginia Tech. He didn't just enter the league, he rewrote the rulebook on what a quarterback could be. He had arm talent, he had speed that shattered stopwatch records, and he had the kind of creative flair that forced defensive coordinators to tear up their playbooks and start [music] from scratch. Over 15 NFL seasons spent primarily with the Atlanta Falcons, the Philadelphia Eagles, and the New York Jets, he earned multiple Pro Bowl selections, [music] an accomplishment he was extremely proud of. Michael Vick, it's truly an honor to welcome you to VladTV. [music] Thank you, man, but you got to get that right.

[00:04:10]It was four-time Pro Bowler. I'm going to start over. No, you don't got to start over.

[00:04:14]You don't got to start over. He reshaped the quarterback position in a way that you can still see echoes of in the modern game. But Vick's off-field [music] issues are almost as famous as his on-field brilliance. And while most people associate his troubles with the infamous dog-fighting conviction that sent him to federal prison in 2007, there was another earlier and much less discussed legal matter that quietly followed him. In March [music] 2005, a woman named Sonya Elliott, a former girlfriend and a healthcare worker, filed a civil lawsuit against Michael Vick. The lawsuit alleged that Vick had knowingly transmitted genital herpes to her after they had unprotected sex in April 2003 and possibly [music] during earlier encounters. The suit claimed that Vick had apologized to her, but had known of his condition and had been visiting clinics under an alias, an [music] alias that would become infamous in sports media circles. Ron Mexico. The case never went to trial. In April [music] 2006, the two parties reached a settlement out of court. The terms were not publicly disclosed, and as is typical in these kinds of settlements, there was no admission of liability or wrongdoing from Vick's side. To this day, Michael Vick has never publicly confirmed that he was ever diagnosed with herpes or any other sexually transmitted condition. And yet, the Ron Mexico story took on a life of its own.

[00:05:24]Fans printed [music] jerseys with the fake name on the back. The NFL eventually had to prohibit its use on custom merchandise. It became a piece of sports folklore, whispered about, joked about, referenced in podcasts and message boards for years afterwards, and it still [music] clings to his legacy like a shadow whenever the dog-fighting conviction isn't the primary subject of conversation. Vick himself went on to serve federal prison time [music] for dog-fighting, returned to the NFL, complete one of the most remarkable comeback stories in professional sports history, and eventually retire as one of the most fascinating and polarizing figures the league has [music] ever produced. If Michael Vick's alleged case was the first domino in a series of high-profile NFL herpes lawsuits, our [music] next player demonstrates that this is a pattern that has continued into the modern era. This time, with not one, but two women making the same kind of claims in the same week.

[00:06:11]>> [music] >> Marcel Dareus. He was a defensive tackle who walked onto NFL fields like a wrecking ball with instincts. He was drafted in the first round of the 2011 NFL draft by the Buffalo Bills out of the University of Alabama, where he had been a key piece of a Crimson Tide defense that had won a BCS National Championship. In the pros, [music] Dareus went on to play nine NFL seasons, primarily for the Bills before being traded to the Jacksonville Jaguars, and he quickly earned a reputation as one of the league's most reliable interior run-stoppers. He earned Pro Bowl honors, anchored defensive lines, and collected a nine-figure payday along the way.

[00:06:46]Then, in July 2018, his life took a dramatic turn that had nothing to do with football. A Texas woman, identified in court documents only as Jane Doe, filed a civil [music] lawsuit in Jacksonville, Florida. The allegations were serious and disturbing. The woman alleged that Dareus had sexually assaulted her while she was unconscious and that he had knowingly transmitted a sexually transmitted disease to her, reported in media coverage as herpes. In a turn of events that made the story even more explosive, a second woman came forward that very same week and filed a similar civil lawsuit with comparable allegations. Suddenly, one of the highest-paid defensive players in the NFL was facing two simultaneous lawsuits involving both sexual assault allegations and STD transmission claims.

[00:07:28]Dareus's attorneys vigorously denied all of the allegations. They called the claims baseless and pushed back in court filings. In April 2019, one of the civil complaints was dismissed. No criminal charges were ever filed in either case.

[00:07:41]Dareus has not publicly confirmed any STD diagnosis, [music] and there has been no public admission of wrongdoing on any front. The lawsuits were a significant distraction for Dareus during a pivotal stretch of his career.

[00:07:52]His on-field production was already declining by that point, and his relationship with the Jaguars organization became increasingly strained. Whether the allegations played a role in how the back half of his career was handled is something only the organizations involved could truly say, but what is undeniable is that the story left a mark on his public legacy that no highlight reel can fully outrun. And while Marcel Dareus fought off those allegations with firm denials from his legal team, our next player faced a similar claim in a way that ended up being even more of a media spectacle because of how the court records themselves got handled. Xavien Howard.

[00:08:26]He is one of the very best cornerbacks the NFL has produced in the last decade.

[00:08:30]He was drafted [music] in the second round of the 2016 NFL draft by the Miami Dolphins out of Baylor. [music] And from the moment he stepped onto an NFL field, he was a shutdown threat. He earned [music] multiple Pro Bowl selections. He led the NFL in interceptions in multiple seasons.

[00:08:45]>> [music] >> He signed one of the richest cornerback contracts in league history. He was, by every on-field measurement, a superstar.

[00:08:51]But in October 2022, his name became entangled in a lawsuit that would [music] draw enormous attention across the national sports media. An anonymous woman, identified in court documents [music] as Jane Doe, filed a civil lawsuit in Broward County, Florida. The allegations were stark. She [music] claimed that Howard had knowingly transmitted genital herpes to her during what she described as a multi-year relationship between them. [music] According to her filing, Howard had learned that he was carrying the virus in 2019, but he had [music] continued having unprotected sexual contact with her without ever disclosing his status.

[00:09:22]She sought more than $30,000 [music] in damages. Howard's attorney responded forcefully, calling the lawsuit fabricated and stating flatly [music] that Howard had never been diagnosed with herpes. The case was eventually dropped. Howard has [music] never publicly addressed the matter directly, choosing instead to let his attorney speak for him in court. There was an unusual twist to this case [music] that made it a particular headache for Howard's camp. A redaction failure in court documents at one point revealed details that were supposed to be kept confidential, [music] which brought the story back into the news cycle more aggressively than it might otherwise have been. Local Miami outlets jumped on the story, and for a few weeks one of the NFL's premier defensive backs was a tabloid headline rather than a highlight reel performer. Howard has continued his NFL career and remained one of the league's top cornerbacks. Though recent years have seen him [music] deal with various injuries and roster situations that have impacted his playing time.

[00:10:13]Publicly [music] he has maintained his innocence on the allegations through his representatives and without any admission of wrongdoing the matter has faded from the mainstream sports conversation. [music] But on the internet where nothing ever truly dies, the story is still just a Google search away for anyone [music] who decides to go looking for it. If Xavien Howard's case was handled quickly and quietly in the courts, the next player [music] on our list is dealing with something very different. A much more recent lawsuit with much more explosive allegations that are still very much in the public eye.

[00:10:42]Eric Moulds.

[00:10:43]He was drafted in the first round of the 1996 NFL draft by the Buffalo Bills out of Mississippi State University. He spent 12 NFL seasons primarily with the Bills before brief stops [music] with the Tennessee Titans and the Houston Texans to close out his career. In his prime [music] Moulds was a big bodied sure handed number one target who could turn short catches into long gains and he became a fan favorite in Buffalo during an era when the Bills were otherwise struggling to find their identity in the post Jim Kelly wilderness years. In December 2024 a woman from the town of Tonawanda, New York filed a civil lawsuit against [music] Moulds in New York State Superior Court. The allegations were among the most serious of any case on our list so far. She alleged [music] that Moulds had knowingly and intentionally spread herpes simplex virus type two, a lifelong and incurable infection, during a relationship that had taken place in 2023. [music] But the lawsuit didn't stop there. It went on to make a claim that if true would represent something extraordinarily troubling. It alleged [music] that Moulds had specifically targeted single mothers who were Buffalo Bills fans in the Western New York region and that he had been doing this to multiple women over the course of years. The lawsuit referenced [music] prior legal matters from over a decade earlier that had allegedly been quietly settled with payments [music] and non-disclosure agreements. According to the filing Moulds pregnant fiance reportedly even contacted the plaintiff and urged her to get tested for sexually transmitted diseases. A detail that added a deeply unsettling dimension to the allegations and made it clear that this was not simply a matter between two individuals.

[00:12:12]As [music] of this writing Eric Moulds has not publicly responded to the claims. The lawsuit is [music] still a recent filing so it's legal trajectory is far from settled. The Buffalo sports media has largely struggled with how to handle it given Moulds' legendary [music] status within the franchise and the serious nature of what is being alleged. It remains to be seen how this case will resolve [music] whether through settlement, dismissal or a trial that would likely generate national headlines. Moulds' side has not issued a public statement beyond whatever representation is handling the matter in the legal arena. He went on to have a successful career getting inducted in the Hall of Fame. It feels great. I mean it's definitely an honor. I get an opportunity to go into a Hall of Fame in Buffalo with a lot of the greats that have played in this city. From one of the most recent cases on our list, all of our stories have been about HIV or STI [music] transmission cases. But the last two entries on our list involve a completely different kind of infection and frankly one that [music] might be scarier than anything that's come before because it can strike any NFL player at any time [music] with no warning at all.

[00:13:15]Brandon Noble.

[00:13:16]He was a defensive tackle who played most of his NFL career with the Washington Redskins with a stop [music] with the San Diego Chargers mixed in. He was a gritty hard working presence on defensive lines that never got the headlines but the coaches [music] and teammates universally respected. He was the kind of player who made a long NFL career not on athletic ceiling alone but on preparation, discipline and a deep love for the [music] trenches. His playing career officially ended around 2005 though not in the way any NFL player would ever want. After going in for what should have been a routine knee arthroscopy a minor outpatient procedure that most athletes have multiple times over the course of a career, something went terribly wrong. Noble contracted an infection known as MRSA [music] which stands for methicillin-resistant staphylococcus aureus. This is the bacterial infection that has developed [music] resistance to most of the antibiotics that doctors typically rely on to treat common staff. MRSA in a healthy adult can be a nightmare.

[00:14:10][music] In a professional athlete whose training environment includes shared equipment, open skin cuts and turf burns it is something of an occupational hazard. And in Brandon Noble's case the infection [music] didn't just linger, it raged. It spread aggressively through his leg and doctors found [music] themselves in a serious battle to save not just his playing career but his leg and ultimately his life. He went through multiple surgeries. The damage to the soft tissue in his leg was severe.

[00:14:35][music] At one point amputation was reportedly a possibility that doctors had to seriously [music] consider. The infection ultimately forced him out of professional football forever ending a career that had been built brick by painful brick over years of work. In the years that followed Noble became [music] a public voice on the issue. He spoke at length in media features and medical conferences about the dangers [music] of MRSA in athletic settings and about what it had nearly cost him. In a detailed account published by Time magazine in 2019 [music] he described the ordeal as one that fundamentally changed how he thought about his own body, his own [music] health and the fragility of a pro athlete's career. The Infectious Diseases Society of America has featured him as a patient story advocate using his experience as a teaching tool about antibiotic resistance and the dangers of dismissing a simple looking infection as no big deal. Noble's case was one of the earliest high profile MRSA cases in the NFL and it [music] helped prompt the league to start examining its locker room cleaning and training room protocols more seriously. But his warning as loud as it was did not prevent the last player on our list from facing an almost identical [music] and equally terrifying ordeal a full decade later. Daniel Fells.

[00:15:45]He was a tight end who carved out a solid NFL career across several franchises. He entered the league in 2008 and went on to play [music] for the St. Louis Rams, the Denver Broncos and the New York Giants among other stops.

[00:15:57][music] He was never a top of the highlight reel superstar but he was a dependable well coached pro who contributed to teams for multiple seasons and was preparing to continue playing as a respected veteran. Then in the fall of 2015 [music] Daniel Fells' career and potentially his life were nearly destroyed by a threat that no training staff in the world could have adequately prepared [music] him for. He contracted what doctors described at the time as a particularly unusual strain of MRSA. The source was reportedly linked to what should have been a minor procedure or a possible locker room exposure though the exact chain of infection was never fully nailed down in the public record. The infection raged through his body with an aggression that shocked even the doctors treating him. In a very short stretch of time Fells underwent at least five emergency surgeries. [music] His foot which was the primary site of the infection was in such serious danger that doctors openly discussed the possibility of amputation as a last resort measure to save his life. He spent weeks fighting [music] through fever, intense pain and medical complications that went far beyond anything a football player typically encounters in the course of a career.

[00:17:02]His case became a national news story.

[00:17:04]CBS News, ESPN, NPR, [music] The Guardian, Sports Illustrated and many other outlets all covered the battle partly because of who Fells was and partly because the severity of the case [music] once again exposed the quiet reality that MRSA in the NFL is not some rare anomaly. It is a legitimate and recurring threat that has affected multiple franchises including entire clusters of cases at organizations like the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Fells ultimately pulled through. He avoided [music] amputation. The infection eventually came under control but his NFL playing career was effectively ended by the ordeal and the road to any semblance of athletic recovery was long and grueling. His case [music] alongside Brandon Noble's a decade earlier prompted the NFL to continue refining its hygiene, cleaning and medical protocols around shared [music] facilities. The league has responded with enhanced education, better cleaning standards and active monitoring. But as long as men are pouring into locker rooms everyday with bruises, turf burns and open cuts the threat will never be fully erased. Thanks for watching. Check out other cards on the screen.