Former NFL wide receiver Antwaan Randle El said Thursday the comments he made during a recent interview about regretting playing football have been overblown.
Randle El, who played for the Pittsburgh Steelers and Washington Redskins during a nine-year career, said he suffers from memory loss, has issues getting up and down stairs, and believes the NFL in its current incarnation may not last past the next few decades.
"I want people to realize, I'm in no way dying, keeling over, struggling to get around, anything like that," Randle El told "The Dan Patrick Show," according to Michael David Smith of PFT. "The memory thing, it could be that I've got six kids, I've got a lot going on."
Randle El did admit he's concerned he might be suffering memory loss due to playing football, particularly from a concussion he suffered in 2010.
The 36-year-old explained that injuries suffered during his career to his feet, knees, and ankle only cause him pain as he climbs down stairs.
“The biggest thing I want people to realize is I’m not in any way in pain,” Randle El said. “I’m intact. I do have my memory. I’m not incapacitated.”
Randle El's comments made headlines because of the continuing controversy around player safety and the long-term implications of concussions leading to chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE), a degenerative brain disease.
While Randle El did backtrack on the seriousness of his health struggles, he remained vigilant in his stance that the NFL must adapt and teach about the dangers of playing football in order to survive, emphasizing that the mentality of playing through injures must change.
"That's one thing I want to be able to reach to the young folks, the pop-warner kid, and even in high school, and even in college. If you get dinged, and you get nicked up and you get hurt, it's OK to come out of the game," Randle El said.
Randle El also stood by his comments about the NFL's future, saying he thinks football could disappear unless more significant safety steps are taken.
And doubling down on his original remarks, the former wideout believes pro baseball would have been a better path.
"Knowing what I know now, I would venture down a different road. And when I say venture down a different road, I had the opportunity to play from professional (base) ball," said Randle El, who was chosen in the 14th round by the Chicago Cubs in the 1997 MLB draft.
