Chicago Bears safety Chris Conte was inactive for the drubbing his team took at the hands of the New Orleans Saints on Monday due to yet another injury that up to this point have plagued his 2014 season. So far he’s missed two games completely and been knocked out early in seven others due to concussions, chronic shoulder problems, and on Monday it was a back injury he suffered the week prior against Dallas. Conte joined the Bears flagship station WBBM 780 during their pregame show on Monday and offered an interesting perspective on NFL player safety.
“I’d rather have the experience of playing in the NFL and die 10 to 15 years earlier than not play in the NFL and have a long life. I don’t really look toward my life after football. I’ll figure things out when I get there. As long as I outlive my parents.”
Conte suffered a concussion in the Bears’ 3rd preseason game against Seattle and also in a Week 5 loss to Carolina. Based on an ESPN poll that showed 85% of players in the NFL would play in the Super Bowl with a concussion, we can probably assume that Conte’s perspective is a majority one within the NFL.
