Buffalo Bills head coach Sean McDermott apologises for using 9/11 hijackers as example of teamwork

Published

2 years ago

December 8, 2023

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The head coach of American football team Buffalo Bills has apologised for using the September 11 hijackers as an example of teamwork during a talk with his players.

Sean McDermott said he regretted making the reference at a training camp session in 2019 and that he “immediately” said sorry to his team following the incident.

McDermott “cited the hijackers as a group of people who were all able to get on the same page to orchestrate attacks to perfection,” according to a report by US journalist and blogger Tyler Dunne.

He then reportedly quizzed his players about what obstacles the attackers had faced, as well as asking them: “What tactics do you think they used to come together?”

Players were said to be stunned by the “strange” comments, with one member of the team left “horrified”, Dunne said.

Nearly 3,000 people died during the September 11 attacks in 2001, when 19 men hijacked four passenger planes before crashing them into targets including the World Trade Center in New York.

The attempt to steer the fourth plane into a high-profile target, possibly the White House, failed when passengers staged a rebellion, causing the aircraft to crash in a field in Pennsylvania instead.

At a press conference on Thursday, McDermott appeared to admit he made the comments and acknowledged he “didn’t do a good enough job of communicating clearly the intent of my message”.

He told reporters: “My intent in the meeting that day was to discuss the importance of communication and being on the same page with the team.

“I regretted mentioning 9/11 in my message that day, and I immediately apologised to the team.

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

He added: “If anyone misinterpreted or didn’t understand my message, I apologise.

“That was about the importance of communication and that everyone needs to be on the same page, ironically enough. So that was important to me then and still is now.”

The revelation about his comments came in a lengthy series of blog posts by Dunne about the Buffalo Bills and their alleged McDermott “problem”.

The 49-year-old is in his seventh season in charge of the NFL team and had previously won praise for turning around their fortunes.

But he has come under scrutiny in recent months following claims from fans and pundits that the side has underachieved this year.

Dunne said he had spoken to multiple anonymous players and sources at the Buffalo Bills, with one claiming the coach was “awkward” and lacking in social skills.

McDermott also allegedly perplexed players during a team talk when he discussed the attempted rescue of a woman who died after driving into the river by Niagara Falls in December 2021.

“The coach explained how members from the coast guard did everything they could to save the woman. He built up the drama. Players held on tight for an inspiring apex, and… nothing. He said the woman died. End of story,” wrote Dunne.

McDermott told the press conference he did not want to comment on other alleged issues raised in Dunne’s article.

US

Soulja Boy arrested on suspected weapons charge during traffic stop

Published

7 hours ago

August 4, 2025

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Soulja Boy arrested on suspected weapons charge during traffic stop

Soulja Boy has been arrested and charged with possession of a firearm during a traffic stop.

The rapper, whose real name is DeAndre Cortez Way, was a passenger in the car that was stopped in the Fairfax area of Los Angeles early on Sunday morning, the LAPD said.

“A passenger was detained and police arrested DeAndre Cortez Way for being a convicted felon in possession of a firearm,” the statement added.

Possessing a firearm as a convicted felon is a felony.

The 35-year-old was booked into jail in the LAPD’s Wilshire Division shortly after 6am. It is not clear if he has since been released.

Police did not provide information on what prompted the traffic stop and who else was in the vehicle with Way.

Soulja Boy is yet to publicly comment on the incident.

Soulja Boy is best known for his 2007 hit Crank That, which topped the Billboard Hot 100 for seven weeks and landed him a nomination for best rap song at the Grammys.

The rapper was arrested and charged with a felony in 2014 for carrying a loaded gun during a traffic stop in LA.

In April this year, the Chicago hip-hop artist was ordered to pay more than $4m (£3m) in damages to his former assistant after being found liable for sexually assault, as well as physically and emotionally abusing them.

US

Tennessee: Man tries to detonate 14 explosive devices while being arrested

Published

1 day ago

August 3, 2025

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Tennessee: Man tries to detonate 14 explosive devices while being arrested

Police in Tennessee have discovered 14 improvised explosive devices in a man’s home as they were arresting him, the local sheriff’s office said.

Officers were executing a warrant in the home of Kevin Wade O’Neal in Old Fort, about 45 miles (70km) east of Chattanooga, after he had threatened to kill public officials and law enforcement personnel in Polk County.

After arresting the 54-year-old, officers noticed “something smouldering” in the bedroom where he was found.

On closer inspection, they discovered an improvised explosive device and evacuated the house until bomb squad officers arrived at the scene.

Fourteen devices were found inside the property – none of which detonated.

O’Neal was charged with 11 counts of attempted first-degree murder, corresponding to nine officers and two other people inside the property when the suspect tried to detonate the devices.

He also faces 14 counts of prohibited weapons and one count of possession of explosive components.

O’Neal is being held at the Polk County jail and his bond is yet to be determined.

US

Trump orders two nuclear subs to be moved closer to Russia

Published

2 days ago

August 2, 2025

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Trump orders two nuclear subs to be moved closer to Russia

Donald Trump says he has ordered two nuclear submarines to be positioned in the “appropriate regions” in a row with former Russian president Dmitry Medvedev.

It comes after Mr Medvedev, who is now deputy chair of Russia‘s Security Council, told the US president on Thursday to remember Moscow had Soviet-era nuclear strike capabilities of last resort.

On Friday, Mr Trump wrote on social media: “Based on the highly provocative statements of the Former President of Russia, Dmitry Medvedev, who is now the Deputy Chairman of the Security Council of the Russian Federation, I have ordered two Nuclear Submarines to be positioned in the appropriate regions, just in case these foolish and inflammatory statements are more than just that.

“Words are very important, and can often lead to unintended consequences, I hope this will not be one of those instances. Thank you for your attention to this matter!”

Trump-Russia live: Follow Ukraine war latest

Speaking outside the White House later in the day, Mr Trump was asked about why he had moved the submarines and replied: “We had to do that. We just have to be careful.

“A threat was made and we didn’t think it was appropriate, so I have to be very careful. So I do that on the basis of safety for our people. A threat was made by a former president of Russia and we’re going to protect our people.”

The spat between Mr Trump and Mr Medvedev came after the US president warned Russia on Tuesday it had “10 days from today” to agree to a ceasefire in Ukraine or face tariffs, along with its oil buyers.

Moscow has shown no sign that it will agree to Mr Trump’s demands.

Trump’s move appears to signal a significant deterioration in relationship with Putin

Normally it’s Moscow rattling the nuclear sabres, but this time it’s Washington in what marks a dramatic escalation in Donald Trump’s war of words with the former Russian president Dmitry Medvedev.

More importantly, it appears to signal a significant deterioration in his relationship with Vladimir Putin.

The US president’s patience with the Kremlin was already at its thinnest earlier this week, when he shrank his deadline for progress towards a peace deal from 50 days to 10.

But Russia’s lack of outward concern with this stricter ultimatum – which has swung from dismissive to (in Medvedev’s case) insulting – seems to have flicked a switch.

For this is the first time Trump’s pressure on Moscow has amounted to anything more than words.

We don’t know where the subs are, or how far they had to move to get closer to Russia, but it’s an act that sits several rungs higher than the usual verbal threats to impose sanctions.

How will Russia respond? I’m not sure Vladimir Putin has ever caved to an ultimatum and I doubt he’ll start now.

But I don’t think he’ll want the situation to deteriorate further. So I suspect he’ll make another offer to the US, that’s dressed up as a concession, but in reality may prove to be anything but.

It’s a tactic that’s worked before, but the stakes have suddenly got higher.

On Thursday, Mr Medvedev reminded Mr Trump that Russia possessed a Soviet-era automated nuclear retaliatory system – or “dead hand”.

Mr Medvedev, a close ally of Russian President Vladimir Putin, was referring to a secretive semi-automated Soviet command system designed to launch Russia’s missiles if its leadership was taken out in a decapitating strike.

He made the remarks after Mr Trump told him to “watch his words” after Mr Medvedev said the US president’s threat of hitting Russia and its oil buyers with punitive tariffs was “a game of ultimatums” and added that “each new ultimatum is a threat and a step towards war” between Russia and the US.

Mr Medvedev served as Russia’s president from 2008 and 2012, when Mr Putin was barred from seeking a third consecutive term, but then stepped aside to let him run again.

As deputy chair of Russia’s Security Council, he has become known for his provocative and inflammatory statements since Moscow invaded Ukraine in 2022.