His body felt good and his heart was willing, but before Haloti Ngata decided to return for a 12th NFL season, he had to make sure his brain was in working order.
Ngata said Thursday that he underwent a battery of neurological tests this winter that helped convince him to play another season of football.
The tests, which were first suggested by his agent, Mike McCartney, took place over a two-week span at the CORE Institute in Brighton, and Ngata said they showed no ill effects from his years in sports.
"With all the things that’s going on with brains and stuff throughout the league, you hear that stuff and me especially, I don’t want to have problems (as I get) older," Ngata said.