Jets Great Bart Scott Pays Emotional Tribute to Former Teammate Nick Mangold

Scott and Mangold were teammates from 2009 to '12.
New York Jets great Bart Scott addressed the death of former teammate Nick Mangold.
New York Jets great Bart Scott addressed the death of former teammate Nick Mangold. / Via SNY
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Bart Scott has joined the chorus of people paying tribute to Nick Mangold.

On Sunday, the Jets announced Mangold had died due to complications from chronic kidney disease. He was 41 years old.

MORE: Rex Ryan's Teary On-Air Tribute to Nick Mangold

Scott, a former Jets linebacker, was teammates with Mangold from 2009 to '12, and discussed the All-Pro center during the team's pregame show on SNY.

"A loss for words is really what my initial reaction is," Scott said. "It doesn't feel real. It still doesn't feel real. My heart just goes out for his children and his wife and his family. I mean, that was his world and he was their world and he was our world, right? He was bigger than life, right?"

Scott discussed how he and Mangold would always go back-and-forth in practice in a good-natured way, calling him, "The thorn in my side."

"He'll be missed, and I still can't believe it," Scott said. "It still hasn't soaked in yet, and I miss my friend... It's not supposed to end this way. And it's just a reminder... how important it is for us to share our feelings with each other because no man knows the time or the day. So you have to live every day like it's your last because it could be. And make sure that the ones that you love, you remind them of how much you love them."

His full comments are below.

That's a wonderful statement by Scott, echoing much of what was said about Mangold on Sunday.

The Jets selected Mangold with the 29th overall pick in the 2006 NFL draft, and he went on to be an all-time great for the franchise. During his 11-year career, Mangold was named first-team All-Pro twice and second-team All-Pro once. He was a seven-time Pro Bowler and was inducted into the Jets' Ring of Honor in 2022.


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Ryan Phillips
RYAN PHILLIPS

Ryan Phillips is a senior writer on the Breaking and Trending News team at Sports Illustrated. He has worked in digital media since 2009, spending eight years at The Big Lead before joining SI in 2024. Phillips also co-hosts The Assembly Call Podcast about Indiana Hoosiers basketball and previously worked at Bleacher Report. He is a proud San Diego native and a graduate of Indiana University’s journalism program.