In the wake of Tua Tagovailoa’s latest concussion, Bart Scott revealed the reason why he retired from the NFL on ESPN’s “Get Up” on Friday.
The 11-year linebacker, who is perhaps most revered for his late-career run with the Jets, said visual issues he was experiencing effectively ended his NFL run.
Scott was cut by the Jets before the 2013 season as a cap casualty, and although he garnered interest, he decided to walk away from the sport at age 32 after a long career.
“Everybody thinks I retired because of my toe,” Scott said, who had reconstructive toe surgery prior to his retirement. “But really, it was because I started seeing spots and lights. I had light sensitivity.”
Scott later added: “I didn’t know what to do. I was like, you know what? It’s time to fold it up,” while acknowledging he had never admitted this before publicly.
This admission comes shortly after Tagovailoa suffered his third diagnosed concussion since 2022 in a Thursday night loss.
Tagovailoa, 26, played all 17 games last season and escaped without significant injury, but otherwise has dealt with head injuries throughout his career.
Scott, a 2006 Pro Bowler and All-Pro, played with the Baltimore Ravens from 2002-08 and grew into a starting linebacker role.
He played for the Jets for the final four seasons of his career, starring on back-to-back teams (2009 and 2010) that reached the AFC title game.
In his career, Scott had 747 tackles, 25 sacks, six forced fumbles and four interceptions.
He also started in 118 of his 172 appearances.