Sean McDermott says he regrets making 9/11 reference in team meeting

McDermott said that he also would address the matter with his players Thursday after his comments during the 2019 team meeting were detailed in a published report.

“I do plan on meeting with the team,” McDermott said. “It is important to me that, as I’ve discussed here, that we are on the same page and that even guys that weren’t here understand how I feel about the 9/11 event. And, as I mentioned to the team then, that I regretted and apologized for me not doing a good job of clearly communicating my point. And I’m going to do the same with the team today when they’re done meetings so that if there’s anyone new, that they understand how important that is to me and my family because it’s an important event, a horrific event in our history.”

The football website GoLongTD.com reported that McDermott, during the team meeting four years ago, “cited the hijackers as a group of people who were all able to get on the same page” to orchestrate the terrorist attacks.

“It was mentioning 9/11 in the context of the team meeting that was — the goal of the team meeting was about the importance of communication and being on the same page as a team,” McDermott said Thursday.

McDermott said that he spoke to his players again that day, at the start of a practice, about an hour after he made the comment.

“I brought everybody together,” McDermott said. “And I said, ‘This was the goal. This was the intent. And I apologize if anyone whatsoever felt a certain type of way coming out of that meeting. If anyone misinterpreted or didn’t understand my message, I apologize. I didn’t do a good enough job of communicating clearly the intent of my message.’ That was about the importance of communication and that everyone needs to be on the same page, ironically enough. And so that was important to me then, and it still is now.”

McDermott said he believed that players understood, following his second message, what he was attempting to convey.

“That’s how I felt,” McDermott said. “Multiple players came up to me. Some [of them] said, ‘You didn’t even have to do that.’ And others said, ‘Thank you for doing that.’ And so, like normally happens, there’s some people who feel a certain way and some people who — but even if there was one, that’s where it started. And so as soon as I felt that way, [it was], ‘Hey, I need to go clear this up.’ And that’s what you do. That’s, to me, how you handle things.”

It was not immediately clear whether this episode could affect the chances of McDermott retaining his job beyond this season.

The Bills are out of sorts, and their championship window may be closing

McDermott has coached the Bills since the 2017 season and has had considerable on-field success. He has led the Bills to five playoff appearances in the previous six seasons. The team has made four straight postseason appearances and won the previous three AFC East titles. The Bills reached the AFC championship game in the 2020 season. But they have not been able to break through and reach a Super Bowl during McDermott’s coaching tenure.

He led the team through an emotional experience last season when Bills safety Damar Hamlin collapsed and suffered cardiac arrest on the field during a Jan. 2 game in Cincinnati, requiring emergency medical responders to resuscitate him. Hamlin made what his doctors initially called a remarkable recovery and resumed his NFL career this season.

Von Miller turns himself in, released on bail after domestic violence allegation

The Bills have struggled this season to a record of 6-6, putting their streak of playoff appearances in jeopardy and raising questions as to whether their championship-contending window is closing. This was the team’s second major off-field controversy in a span of a week.

Last week, Bills linebacker Von Miller turned himself in to police in the Dallas area after authorities there issued an arrest warrant for him in connection to a case of alleged domestic violence. Miller posted bond and was released. He rejoined the Bills this week and remains eligible to play in Sunday’s game at Kansas City. The NFL has not, to this point, put him on paid administrative leave via placement on the commissioner’s exempt list. General Manager Brandon Beane said Wednesday that the Bills would allow the legal process to play out and would follow the NFL’s lead on the matter.