During a team meeting four years ago, Sean McDermott, the coach of the Buffalo Bills, expressed regret on Thursday for attributing coordination to the 9/11 terrorists.
Citing the hijackers, McDermott emphasized the significance of communication. McDermott claimed that after recognizing the interpretation of his message, he held another team meeting and apologized to his teammates an hour later.
And he was going to do it again with his current club on Thursday after what McDermott had said at the meeting during training camp in 2019 was made public by an article on NFL journalist Tyler Dunne’s Substack page.
The report cited many anonymous sources. In addition to being a terrible day in American history, McDermott also lost a close family friend on 9/11, he stated when making an impromptu visit in the Bills media room.
I’m going to do the same with the team today, as I indicated to them then that I regretted and apologized for not doing a good enough job of explaining my point, he continued.
Therefore, in case anyone is new, they comprehend the significance of that for my family and me, as it’s a terrible incident that happened in our past.
McDermott repeatedly tapped the podium to drive home his point. He stopped numerous times, his eyes welling with tears as he considered what to say.
According to McDermott, the hijackers were a collection of people who were able to get on the same page to organize attacks to perfection, as stated in the article.
On September 11, 2001, hijacked jets flew into the World Trade Center, the Pentagon, and a Pennsylvanian field, killing close to 3,000 people.
On US soil, it was the bloodiest terrorist strike to date. McDermott refuted the reports of his remarks made during the meeting.
He felt compelled to address the matter immediately after learning about the report from Derek Boyko, the team’s vice president of communication.
I told Derek to stop right then because this is essential to me, McDermott recalled saying when he presented this specific piece.
In his sixth season in Buffalo, the 49-year-old McDermott is recognized for turning a struggling team into a contender. The 17-year postseason drought that had stood as the longest active skid in the NFL was ended by the Bills in his first season, 2017.
Buffalo is the three-time defending AFC East champion and has advanced to the playoffs in each of the last four seasons. His 68-41 record puts him second only to Hall of Famer Marv Levy in the franchise’s victory total.
As a defensive coordinator, McDermott advanced through the NFL ranks, first with the Philadelphia Eagles of his hometown and subsequently with Carolina.
However, given Buffalo’s (6-6) poor performance this season, McDermott’s play has come under fire. After being sacked as offensive coordinator last month, the team is currently outside of the AFC playoff picture.
On Sunday, the Bills go to Kansas City (8-4) to play. Speaking about what he told his players in 2019, McDermott said, If somebody misread or didn’t grasp my message, I apologize I didn’t do a good enough job of explaining clearly the objective of my message. I still think it’s vital, just as I did back then.
The most recent problem off the field to surface for McDermott’s team was his apologies. Famous pass rusher Von Miller was accused of assaulting his children’s mother, leading to charges of felony domestic abuse last week.
