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When Mathis dies, he will donate his brain to research to see how football might have affected it.
"Its not in my will yet, but Im sure it will be," Mathis said. "If you can do anything after, its kind of like donating your organs after death. Why wouldnt you if they are healthy enough to help someone else live or make life better?
"I dont understand why you wouldnt do something that could possibly actually make someones life better. Thats just me ... thats just how I think mentally."
"[Are] the right precautions being taken after it happens? Because you cant stop it. Its impossible to stop. The thing about it, how does it affect the person and how long does it affect the person, is the concern and where I think we need to go," Mathis said. "We dont need to go, 'Is it affecting them?' Of course its going to affect someone.
"How its affecting them and how long its affecting this person, thats where we need to start shedding more light ... instead of saying, 'Oh, it doesnt, our game is not, our game is concussion-free,' you know what Im saying? But how much damage is it actually doing? Thats where it needs to go."
And thats what more players, Mathis said, need to know.
Despite his knowledge, Mathis said he rarely discusses it in the Lions locker room. He will remind cornerback Darius Slay to keep his head up when tackling to prevent possible head and neck injuries, but he said brain injuries are not discussed among players.
He also said he won't allow his son to play the game.
"Its not in my will yet, but Im sure it will be," Mathis said. "If you can do anything after, its kind of like donating your organs after death. Why wouldnt you if they are healthy enough to help someone else live or make life better?
"I dont understand why you wouldnt do something that could possibly actually make someones life better. Thats just me ... thats just how I think mentally."
"[Are] the right precautions being taken after it happens? Because you cant stop it. Its impossible to stop. The thing about it, how does it affect the person and how long does it affect the person, is the concern and where I think we need to go," Mathis said. "We dont need to go, 'Is it affecting them?' Of course its going to affect someone.
"How its affecting them and how long its affecting this person, thats where we need to start shedding more light ... instead of saying, 'Oh, it doesnt, our game is not, our game is concussion-free,' you know what Im saying? But how much damage is it actually doing? Thats where it needs to go."
And thats what more players, Mathis said, need to know.
Despite his knowledge, Mathis said he rarely discusses it in the Lions locker room. He will remind cornerback Darius Slay to keep his head up when tackling to prevent possible head and neck injuries, but he said brain injuries are not discussed among players.
He also said he won't allow his son to play the game.
