Football coach apologises for using 9/11 hijackers as example of ‘good teamwork’ | US News

An NFL coach has apologised for using the 9/11 hijackers as an example of good teamwork while giving his team a pep talk.

Buffalo Bills coach Sean McDermott said he regretted making the remarks during a training camp session in 2019 and that he ‘immediately’ apologised to his team following the incident.

The admission came following a report which claimed McDermott ‘cited the hijackers as a group of people who were all able to get on the same page to orchestrate attacks to perfection.’

He then reportedly quizzed his players about what obstacles the terrorists faced and asked them ‘What tactics do you think they used to come together?’

The players were said to be left stunned by his ‘strange’ remarks, according to US journalist Tyler Dunne, who said at least one team member was left ‘horrified’ by the diatribe.

After being confronted by the allegations at a press conference this week, McDermott acknowledged the remarks and said he ‘didn’t do a good enough job of communicating clearly the intent of my message’.

He told reporters: ‘My intent in the meeting that day was to discuss the importance of communication and being on the same page with the team.

‘I regretted mentioning 9/11 in my message that day, and I immediately apologised to the team.

‘Not only was 9/11 a horrific event in our country’s history, but a day that I lost a good family friend.’

He added: ‘If anyone misinterpreted or didn’t understand my message, I apologise.

‘That was about the importance of communication and that everyone needs to be on the same page, ironically enough. So that was important to me then and still is now.’

The accusations against McDermott were made by Dunne in a lengthy series of blog posts about Buffalo Bills and their supposed McDermott ‘problem’.

McDermott has managed the Bills for seven seasons and has previously been praised for reversing the team’s fortunes.

But recently he has been criticised by both fans and pundits after the team has underperformed this year.

Dunne claimed that multiple former players and staff members had criticised McDermott’s lack of social skills and said he was ‘awkward’ to be around in person.

In another perplexing incident, Dunne claimed the coach once used a team talk to discuss the attempted rescue of a woman who died after driving into the river by Niagara Falls in December 2021.

‘The coach explained how members from the coast guard did everything they could to save the woman. He built up the drama. Players held on tight for an inspiring apex, and… nothing. He said the woman died. End of story,’ wrote Dunne.

McDermott refused to comment on any of the other allegations raised by Dunne during the press conference.

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