Awkward moment Buffalo Bills coach references his shocking 9/11 comments from 2019
Buffalo Bills head coach Sean McDermott almost talked himself into trouble again Tuesday while discussing his team’s performance against the New England Patriots.
The Bills struggled to break down the Patriots on Sunday despite being strong favorites for a tough win, eventually posting a 24-21 win.
Reflecting on Tuesday’s game, McDermott stopped himself from using an analogy about flying after comments he made in 2019 about 9/11 in 2023 emerged, sparking outrage and forcing the Bills head coach to issue an apology.
As Go Long first reported, McDermott used the September 11 attackers as an example for people gathering at a training camp in 2019. Four years later, when that aspect of his speech became public, McDermott apologized unreservedly at an unscheduled news conference.
“I regret mentioning September 11th in my message that day and immediately apologized to the team,” McDermott said in December 2023. September 11th was not only a horrific event in our country’s history, but also a day when I lost a close family friend. .
“9/11 was mentioned in the context of the team meeting. The purpose of the team meeting was the importance of communication and being on the same page as a team.”
Sean McDermott was asked to give his impressions of the film #Bills performance in the first half against the Patriots. He was about to use an airplane analogy, but stopped himself.
If you don’t learn from the past, you are doomed to repeat it #BillsMafia pic.twitter.com/yK05boUtHF
— Alex Brasky (@alexbrasky) December 23, 2024
Now, on Christmas Eve, McDermott discussed what frustrated him about the Patriots’ win.
“Um, let’s see, I was about to use the airplane analogy, but I’ll stay away from that,” he said.
Go Long’s report last year said: ‘He (McDermott) told the whole team to come together.
But then, sources on the ground say, he used a strange model: the terrorists on September 11, 2001. He called the hijackers a group of people who could all come together to orchestrate attacks to perfection.
“One by one, McDermott began asking specific players in the room questions. “What tactics do you think they used together?”
This year, even after the narrow win over the Patriots, McDermott and the Bills are enjoying a stellar season.
They are among the favorites to reach the Super Bowl and Sunday’s Patriots victory makes them 12-3 and the winners of the AFC East. Quarterback Josh Allen is also a top contender for the MVP award.
The Bills are back in NFL action on Sunday against Aaron Rodgers and the New York Jets.