Bengals' Marvin Lewis says concussions 'linger longer' because of media attention
Cincinnati Bengals head coach Marvin Lewis strayed from the standard company line on concussions in a press conference Wednesday.
Lewis had this to say when was asked about linebacker Vontaze Burfict, who has sustained multiple concussions in his short time in the NFL.
"Well, he had a concussion against Atlanta. That's that biggest concern that way," Lewis said, according to Cincinnati.com. "You don't want him to have, you know, but again I coached defenses and linebackers for a long time and concussions didn't linger.
"Now we have found that because of the media and things they seem to linger longer. There's a lot of attention paid to it. I don't know why they linger longer. I don't remember them lingering like they do now."
Needless to say, Lewis's comments caught the ire of media folk and former players alike.
NFLPA president Eric Winston was the most vocal in his objections, also taking issue with Carolina Panthers head coach Ron Rivera's classification of rookie wide receiver Kelvin Benjamin's concussion as "mild."
Always good to see the NFL educating their HCs on health/safety. Glad they are taking the lead on serious issues like concussions. #sarcasm
— Eric Winston (@ericwinston) October 15, 2014
You don't have a "mild" concussion. You either have one or you don't.
— Eric Winston (@ericwinston) October 15, 2014
Perpetuating the idea that it's the medias fault that concussions "longer" longer just shows how far we still have to go in educating every1
— Eric Winston (@ericwinston) October 15, 2014
After being asked if he'd like to clarify his comments after Wednesday's practice, Lewis declined, but did add he shouldn't have broached the subject to begin with.