Gleason corrects HBO comment on Williams' speech
Former Saints special teams player Steve Gleason clarified quotes attributed to him for an episode of HBO's "Real Sports" to be televised Tuesday.
Gleason said in an email to Sports Illustrated, the New Orleans Times-Picayune and ProFootballTalk.com that media excerpts from his interview were the "misquote of the week."
Asked about former Saints defensive coordinator Gregg Williams' speech in January 2012 before the playoff game against the 49ers, Gleason was quoted as saying "The real problem was no one seemed shocked. There was no discussion of 'Wow, did we just hear that?'"
Gleason said he actually said "The group I was with ... no one seemed shocked."
HBO said in a statement it changed the subtitles for Tuesday's interview.
The audio of the interview was released by filmmaker Sean Pamphilon, who was with the Saints to document Gleason's battle with Lou Gehrig's disease. Gleason, a friend of many players and administrators on the Saints, was a guest of the team.
"In my opinion, speeches like the one given by Gregg Williams are not the cause of increased rate of brain disease in the NFL population," Gleason said in the email. "The increased rate of brain disease in the NFL population is caused by the way the game is played within the rules."
