Cardinals' Mathieu: My kids won't play football until high school
When it comes to the idea of kids playing football, Tyrann Mathieu doesn't exactly appear to share the same viewpoint as his head coach.
"My children won't," the Arizona Cardinals' star defensive back said Friday in a now-deleted tweet, according to Mike Freeman of Bleacher Report. "Too much on the body at such young ages. They can play in HS. If they want."
Bruce Arians was emphatic when speaking on the issue earlier in the week, telling Peter King of the MMQB that parents shouldn't be afraid to let their kids play the game.
"People who say, 'I won't let my son play (football)' are fools," Arians said. "There are DNA tests now that I could give your kid and tell you the chances of your child having a concussion or should they play a contact sport of any kind.
"It's only 400 bucks. Go get one."
Arians also went on to touch on the importance of life lessons learned while being involved in football, a sentiment Mathieu appeared to agree with in a separate tweet Friday.
Football has taught me so many lessons... I've learned to be coachable, accept losing, work with others, teaches you how to work
— Tyrann Mathieu (@Mathieu_Era) March 25, 2016
Mathieu emerged as one of the league's top all-around defensive backs in 2015, but his breakout season was brought to an end when he suffered a torn ACL in Week 15.