NFL Hall of Famer Gil Brandt on Saturday made a number of incredibly distasteful comments after the tragic death of Dwayne Haskins, and now has apologized.
Haskins, a 24-year-old quarterback with the Pittsburgh Steelers, died Saturday morning after he reportedly was struck by a truck in South Florida.
Brandt, 90, while speaking on SirusXM’s NFL radio show Saturday morning, dug up Haskins’ past and spoke down about the Ohio State product’s pursuit of a career in the NFL. He has been criticized for his comments on social media by former teammates of Haskins, and others.
“This morning while learning of Dwayne Haskins’ passing, I reacted carelessly and insensitively on a radio interview,” Brandt tweeted. “I want to apologize to Mr. Haskins’ family and anyone who heard my poor choice of words. I truly apologize. My heart goes out to his family at this difficult time.”
Brandt was a longtime executive of the Dallas Cowboys before being inducted to the Hall of Fame in 2019.
“Well, you know, anytime anybody is killed or anybody dies, but he was a guy that was living to be dead, so to speak,” Brandt said during the interview.
Brandt was not the only one to have an insensitive reaction to Haskins’ untimely death. ESPN NFL reporter Adam Schefter also has come under fire for his initial, since-deleted tweet framing Haskins as a player who struggled to catch on at the professional level.
Schefter, unlike Brandt, has not apologized for his widely-ridiculed post.
