For Brett Favre’s entire career, the former quarterback was known for his toughness and playing through pain. And according to him, this happened pretty often.
While appearing on The Bubba Army radio show, Favre said he thinks he frequently got concussions and ultimately played through them.
“Concussions happen all the time,” Favre said, via TMZ.com. “You get tackled and your head hits the turf, you see flashes of light or ringing in your ears but you're able to play—that's a concussion.”
Therefore, Favre estimates the number of concussions he suffered in the NFL is very high.
“So, based on that, [I’ve suffered] thousands,” he said. “Had to be, because every time my head hit the turf, there was ringing or stars going, flash bulbs … but I was still able to play.”
Favre officially retired after the 2010 season, three years before the NFL reached a settlement with former players over a concussion lawsuit. Since then, the league has tightened its protocols to make sure players aren’t playing with concussions.
However, while Favre was playing, the concussion protocols were not nearly as strict, meaning the quarterback’s statement may have some truth to it. Especially with the recklessness Favre demonstrated in the league, there were probably times he played through concussions that would not be allowed in today’s game.
