The Neanderthals were a direct ancestor of modern humans.

The statement is false. Neanderthals were not a direct ancestor of modern humans. While Neanderthals were a closely related species that coexisted with and interbred with anatomically modern humans, they followed their own evolutionary path and diverged from the common ancestor we share with them around 600,000 to 800,000 years ago. Modern humans evolved separately in Africa and eventually migrated to other parts of the world, where they interbred with Neanderthals and other archaic human species. Therefore, while we share some genetic material with Neanderthals, they are not our direct ancestors.