Bill’s Coach Responds To Report That He Used 9/11 Hijackers As An Example Of Perfect Teamwork

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Sean McDermott
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Head coach of the Buffalo Bills, Sean McDermott, responded to a report claiming that he referenced the 9/11 hijackers as an example of perfect teamwork during a speech in 2019.

According to bombshell report on Tyler Dunne’s Substack page, McDermott allegedly utilized the tragic events of the worst attack in United States history to illustrate the significance of effective communication and unity within the team.

Acknowledging that he is not without flaws, McDermott expressed his disappointment and hurt following the emergence of the report.

He said it was “clearly” an “attack on his character, which is as important or more than winning or losing games.

“What’s important to me, from day one, is how you handle yourself. It doesn’t mean I’ve been perfect,” he said at a press conference on Friday.

“I know who I am,” McDermott said. “I know how I try to do things. Am I without flaw? No, I’m not without flaw and I say that humbly.”

“I believe we try and do things right here. It doesn’t mean that everything we do is right, people are going to have their own opinions,” he went on.

“I believe we’ve won a lot of games here since we’ve arrived and I’m confident in that. I’m confident in this football team. People are going to have their opinions, I can’t control that.”

Dunne’s article said that McDermott called the hijackers that crashed planes into the World Trade Center and the Pentagon, “a group of people who were able to get on the same page to orchestrate attacks to perfection.”

“One by one, McDermott started asking specific players in the room questions. ‘What tactics do you think they used to come together?'” Dunne wrote based on accounts by unnamed sources.

“A young player tried to methodically answer. ‘What do you think their biggest obstacle was?’ A veteran answered, ‘TSA,’ which mercifully lightened the mood.'”

The article was posted on Thursday, and McDermott was subsequently alerted to its presence by Derek Boyko, the Bills’ vice president of communication.

“When Derek shared this particular piece, I said, ‘Stop right there because this is important to me,'” he told reporters the next day.

“Not only was 9/11 a horrific event in our country’s history, but a day that I lost a good family friend,” the head coach continued.

He said that his “intent” during the meeting was to talk about the “importance of communication” and “being on the same page” as the rest of the team.

“As I mentioned to the team then that I regretted and apologized for me not going a good enough job of communicating my point, I’m going to do the same with the team today,” he noted.

“So if there’s anyone new, they understand how important that is to me and my family because it’s an important event, a horrific event in our history.”

He appeared to be visibly emotional during the address and tapped the podium multiple times.

“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,” he concluded.

“I felt it was important then, and I still feel like it’s important.”

Bills GM Brandon Beane defended McDermott to reporters on Friday, noting that “none of us are perfect.”

He commented that the players know McDermott for who he is, and said that he’d “stand by Sean’s character any day of the week.”

Bills safety Micah Hyde also lent support to his coach. “I think it’s a low blow to question Sean’s character,” he told reporters.

“So for guys to do that, it’s kind of messed up in my eyes. I’m pro Sean McDermott, I trust in everything he’s done around here.”

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