New York Jets rookie safety Jamal Adams is receiving backlash today for comments he made during a Jets fan forum on Monday, when asked about the NFL's rule changes geared toward player safety, and CTE.
Adams, the #6 overall pick in the 2017 NFL Draft, said, "Literally, if I had the perfect place to die, I'd die on the field."
While his response was applauded by some people in attendance, others viewed his comments as being insensitive toward those who have dealt with the degenerative brain disease, more commonly known as CTE.
Keana McMahon, who was married to former NFL offensive lineman Justin Strzelcyzk, spoke to the New York Daily News about Adams' comments.
McMahon told the New York Daily News.
"I don't even know what to say. This guy [Adams] doesn't know what's coming down the pipeline. He has no idea what dealing with someone who has CTE is like," Keana McMahon said.
McMahon has first hand experience in dealing with someone suffering from CTE, and the mood swings and volatile behavior that goes along with it. Nine months after she and Strzelczyk divorced, he led state troopers on a highway chase in New York and ultimately died in a head-on collision with a tanker truck.
Green Bay Packers tight end also took a stance against Jamal Adams' willingness to die on the field.
NFL commissioner Roger Goodell, who was seated next to Adams when he made the comment, later added that the rookie safety was really just trying to make a point of how passionate he is about the game of football.
Per ESPN,
"I think what he was really making the point of is how much he loved the game and how passionate he is about the game," Goodell told reporters. "It's just something that means a great deal to him. I get the emotion of that."
Check out video footage of Adams' comments below.
