Mike Rodak, ESPN Staff Writer 7y

Bills coach Sean McDermott on college concussions: 'I can't remember'

ORCHARD PARK, N.Y. -- Buffalo Bills coach Sean McDermott said Friday that he does not recall whether he suffered any concussions as a player at William & Mary and does not regret playing college football.

“I’m not sure. I can’t remember,” McDermott said, laughing, when asked about his concussion history.

McDermott’s comments came after Boston University researchers studying the brain of Aaron Hernandez revealed Thursday that the former New England Patriots tight end had stage 3 (out of 4) of the degenerative brain disease chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE). Hernandez's lawyers have filed a lawsuit against the NFL and Patriots, accusing them of hiding the true dangers of the sport.

McDermott, in his first season as Bills coach, played as a safety at William & Mary. He graduated in 1998 before beginning his coaching career with the Philadelphia Eagles.

“I think about [my health],” McDermott said. “But I also know that I wouldn’t trade those [college] years for anything. I have extremely great things to say about my career as a player. Like I said, I wasn’t very good but I wouldn’t trade it for anything.”

McDermott stressed Friday that he and his coaching staff are trying to teach players the proper technique in order to prevent brain injuries.

“I think really that it’s important that safety remains our No. 1 priority,” he said. “We always stress the safety and playing with proper technique. That is really a big point of our coaching, a big emphasis every day of our coaching. In fact, with our first team meeting. ‘Hey, your head is always up.’ I always talk about your chin being up, because it brings everything else up. Everything we do is focused on the safety and protecting the game that way.”

^ Back to Top ^