If the Buffalo Bills general manager Doug Whaley feels good about helping to put his players on the field every week during the NFL season he has a funny way of showing it.
In an interview with WGR 550 radio on Tuesday Whaley indicated he believes the widespread concerns over safety in football are justified. “This is the game of football,” he said. “Injuries are part of it. It’s a violent game that I personally don’t think humans are supposed to play.”
Whaley’s extraordinary quote came while he was discussing the Bills wide receiver Sammy Watkins, who recently had surgery on his broken foot.
“These [injuries] are going to come up,” Whaley said. “We trust in our medical staff and we trust in each individual athlete to do what they have to do to get back on the field.”
Whaley added that he didn’t believe Watkins was injury prone. “If you look at his game log, he’s only missed three games,” he said. “So is he injury-prone? I wouldn’t say that. Are things going to come up with a guy like this? We hope that gets limited in the future,” Whaley said, before stating his broader thoughts on football.”
The effects of concussions on players have plagued the image of football in recent years. A recent congressional report claims that NFL officials campaigned to influence a government research study into the effects of football on brain disease.
