Report: Greg McElroy hid concussion from Jets staff, but told several players

Greg McElroy did not tell the Jets staff about his concussion until Thursday. (Rich Schultz/Getty Images)

New York Jets quarterback Greg McElroy did not tell the Jets training staff about his concussion until Thursday. But he told teammates about his symptoms much earlier in the week, ESPN.com's Jane McManus reported.

According to the report, McElroy told several teammates about his reluctance to reveal the concussion to the Jets staff. Jets head coach Rex Ryan surprisingly announced that McElroy would be out for Sunday's finale against the Buffalo Bills and that Mark Sanchez would start in his place.

McManus named wide receiver Clyde Gates and offensive guard Matt Slauson as two of the teammates that were aware of McElroy's plight. Gates was diagnosed with a concussion earlier this season, so McElroy came and talked to him on Tuesday in the team's hotel.

"He came to my room and we talked about it," Gates told ESPNNewYork.com. "He was hurting real bad. I was like, 'Bro, I know, I've been down that road already. I'm just saying you can't try to tough it out cause you going to end up hurting yourself. You've got to let everybody know how you really feel.' "

Slauson, meanwhile, told McManus that he suffered a concussion in either 2010 or 2011, about which he did not alert the Jets. But he said that McElroy's concussion concerned him.

"He definitely has that (warrior) mentality, but it got to the point where it was scaring him," Slauson said.