Wes Welker Says He Won't Live Worrying If His 'Brain Is Going to Explode'

Former NFL wide receiver Wes Welker, who suffered six reported concussions during his professional football career, said he can't live his life concerned his "brain is going to explode at any second."

On Wednesday, Mike Reiss of ESPN.com passed along comments from the longtime slot receiver and current Houston Texans assistant coach about his history of head injuries.

"I can't sit here and worry about it; I don't want to live my life that way," Welker said. "Is there a possibility [of long-term implications]? Maybe, I don't know. We'll have to see how everything kind of happens, I guess."

He added: "I'm going to try to do everything I can to put myself in a position where I'm healthy and hopefully good. If I'm good, then great. At the same time, I'm not going to live my life worrying if my brain is going to explode at any second."

The 36-year-old Texas Tech product made 903 catches for 9,924 yards and 50 touchdowns across a 12-year career that included stops with the San Diego Chargers, Miami Dolphins, New England Patriots, Denver Broncos and St. Louis Rams.

He rose to prominence working alongside legendary Pats quarterback Tom Brady, catching at least 111 passes in five of his six years with the organization.

His willingness to make tough plays in traffic, even if it meant absorbing a hard hit, became his calling card while working in the middle of the field.

Welker told ESPN.com he might have done things a little differently if he understood the impact head injuries could have when his career started as an undrafted free agent in 2004.

"Do I wish, looking back, [that I] would have gone out of bounds or gotten down, earlier in my career especially? There's always a warrior mentality, but trying to be smart about some of those things; I mean, yeah, I probably would have," he said. "When you don't have any concussions and you're just kind of going out there recklessly, you're 20-something years old, you don't think about it. You just go play."

In October, the Concussion Legacy Foundation announced the latest testing results showed 91 percent of college football players studied (138 out of 152) were diagnosed with chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE), a degenerative brain disease believed to come from repeated head trauma.

Meanwhile, Ken Belson of the New York Times noted the U.S. Supreme Court opted against a review of the NFL's concussion settlement with former players in December, allowing payments to begin on a deal that could see individuals receive as much as $5 million as part of a projected $1 billion agreement.

Welker explained to ESPN.com he agreed to become a member of the Texans coaching staff after going unsigned for the 2016 season, saying, "Having something I enjoy and I'm passionate about keeps me busy, keeps my mind thinking, keeps me engaged."