Kraft, commissioner sound off on Johnson
Neither directly address former Pats LB's comments
MIAMI -- Patriots owner Robert Kraft, who arrived in South Florida and attended Commissioner Roger Goodell’s Super Bowl XLI press conference today, commented on former Patriots linebacker Ted Johnson.
Johnson told the Boston Globe in today’s editions that he suffered ‘‘countless’’ head injuries during his 10-year career with the Patriots, including back-to-back concussions suffered within days during the 2002 season when he said the team didn’t give him proper time to recover. Johnson is suffering from severe depression, and said ‘‘I don’t want anyone to end up like me.’’
Kraft did not address Johnson’s comments directly, speaking only in general terms.
‘‘Ted is one of my favorite players. I have a deep affection for him,’’ Kraft said. ‘‘He’s having a lot of problems. He’s in my thoughts and prayers.’’
Prior to Kraft’s comments, Goodell was asked how concerned he was by Johnson’s allegations, and also his thoughts on the “common practice” of players returning too quickly from concussions, and if the league is in a good place in that regard.
“I won’t accept the premise that it’s common practice, but it does concern me. From our standpoint, we want to ensure that our players have the safest possible environment in which to play,” Goodell said. “We have spent a great deal of time and energy on the concussion issue. We’ve had a concussion committee that has been studying this issue from a medical standpoint, including 12 doctors -- five are from the outside and seven from the NFL. They have been looking at this issue and trying to see what it is we can learn about concussions that will be helpful as we go forward. That has led to new helmet designs, it’s led to rule changes, and I think a safer environment for our players.
“So I am very concerned about it. I didn’t know about the Ted Johnson issue until yesterday afternoon, which also disappoints me. I would like to know about this. Our staff would like to know about this in advance so that we can identify these issues further.” 