Former Bills center reveals how Peyton Manning gave him hope after neck injury ended his career

By Ross Kelly June 29, 2018 at 3:22pm

It may have flown under the radar considering the position he plays, but Buffalo Bills center Eric Wood retired this offseason due to lingering neck issues.

Wood, 32, not only started every game last season, but he also participated in every single offensive snap for the Bills as they made the postseason for the first time since 1999.

Yet he says he hurt his neck during Week 6 and failed his end-of-season physical. That, combined with wear and tear, forced an early retirement for Wood, who has lost nearly 50 pounds since then as he’s settled into being a former football player.

Had a blast supporting @JimKelly1212 and @KellyforKids this past weekend! Continue the prayers for the toughest guy I know #KellyTough pic.twitter.com/pxRVAWfgrA

— Eric Wood (@EWood70) June 6, 2018

However, Wood said on “The Jim Rome Show” that it took some time for him to come to terms with his NFL career being over. It wasn’t until talking with doctors about Peyton Manning’s neck injury did Wood realize that there is no chance for a return.

“I said, ‘Well, what about Peyton Manning, didn’t he have something similar?’ They said, ‘Yeah, but it was lower [on his neck],’ so that’s why Peyton was able to get that fusion, and if I were able to get the fusion, I still wouldn’t pass a physical to be able to come back and play,” Wood said.

Manning had multiple neck surgeries in 2011, including a spinal fusion that knocked him out of the entire season. He then joined the Denver Broncos and would play four more years, winning an MVP in 2013 and a Super Bowl in 2015.

Wood sought out second and third opinions hoping that he could have the same storybook ending as Manning, but he found no such luck.

“As a football player, you always say, ‘Hey, there’s going to be someone who can clear me, someone who can do a surgery maybe a little differently.’ Ultimately, everybody we spoke to, a lot of team guys and a lot of non-team neuro-guys, said, ‘Eric, there isn’t a surgery that we can do that still allows you to come back and play ball,’” Wood said.

Will the Bills make the playoffs again in 2018?

After the 2017 season ended, Wood didn’t even plan on getting his neck checked out and was already planning to train for the 2018 season.

But the Bills’ medical staff pushed for more testing to be done, and an MRI showed damage to his vertebrae.

“I didn’t even want to get the MRI at the time because I was trying to rush back to Louisville after the playoff game because my wife was getting ready to be due,” Wood said. “I just said, ‘Clear me for the Pro Bowl, let me get out of here.’ And they said, ‘Eric, we need to get this MRI done.’ So I got the MRI done, and thank God that something didn’t happen throughout the season.

“I’m extremely blessed I was urged to get that MRI.”

Wood would announce his retirement in January, but due to salary cap implications he wasn’t officially released until May. The Bills reached an injury settlement with him so that the guaranteed portion of his contract counts against the team’s salary cap in 2018 instead of lingering until 2019.

Wood also talked to Jim Rome about Tyrod Taylor and what Cleveland is getting with his former quarterback. There hasn’t been much hope for Browns fans in quite a while, but Wood believes Taylor is just what both the Browns and Baker Mayfield need.

“I think Tyrod is a really efficient quarterback,” Wood said. “He does not turn the ball over a whole lot. He’s not going to make a bunch of headlines with his mouth, but very very efficient at the position.

“I think it’s a great pickup for Cleveland. There is no one better for Baker Mayfield to learn work habits from that Tyrod.”

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