Q&A: Dawson Knox freed his mind... and knows his Buffalo Bills can, too
As a young player, he was paralyzed in fear. Then, his brother tragically died. How did he get to the other side? Dawson Knox opens up to Go Long ahead of his seventh playoff push.
Let’s first give credit where credit is due. Dawson Knox had a baby on Dec. 9 and — this past month? — his wife has been handling the bulk of parental duties at all hours of the night. A noble sacrifice. She understands that Knox is on the cusp of a seventh postseason and could use some sleep.
Of course, Dawson also realizes he’ll be taking over whenever the offseason arrives.
He simply hopes it’s not any time soon.
The Bills are back in the playoffs… again… with Super Bowl or Bust expectations. This organization has been posted up at the championship doorstep for nearly a decade. They’ll need to win three straight games on the road to reach Super Bowl LX in Santa Clara and this wild-card matchup is a difficult one. Jacksonville, the AFC South champs, have only lost once since October.
What is the mentality of a team gearing up for yet another do-or-die postseason?
After 13 Seconds, a snow-globe playoff crusher, multiple AFC title defeats, Wide Right II, etc., I wanted to somehow get a sense of this team’s psyche.
Knox has lived it all.
Knox has also experienced the ultimate highs and lows off the field.
Since Go Long chatted at length with the tight end for this piece in 2022, he has tragically lost his brother Luke and, most recently, welcomed a child into the world. If anyone can give this team proper perspective, it’s him. It’s the veteran that numerous players bring up as the leader behind the scenes. Dalton Kincaid leaned on Knox all offseason, and he’s not alone.
We get into several topics:
The birth of his daughter, Noa, and how it changed his perspective on life.
What makes these 2025 Bills different than past editions?
Losing his brother. At first? He was mad at God. This made no sense. How did Knox move on? (“I was in shock. I didn’t really know how to feel or what to feel.”)
He deleted social media. He doesn’t ride the wave — but it wasn’t always like that. Knox opens up on “paralyzing” himself in fear as a young player.
These playoff games mean 100x more than any regular season game. But when Knox learned football is not life and death, his mind cleared.
Here’s my 1 on 1 with Knox in full from One Bills Drive.
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As the leader of this team, what is the state of the Bills right now going into the playoffs? Like you know, you will all be judged by what happens Sunday at 1 o’clock way more than anything that happened the last 365 days.
Knox: No doubt. I think first and foremost, I’m excited. Everyone in this building is very excited. Part of the mindset of the playoffs is you’re moving forward into a new season. What you do in the regular season matters because it gives you momentum and helps you build on what you want to do in the playoffs and it gets you into seeding — homefield advantage or what seed you’re going to be. But from now on, all that matters is this week. We’re going to go out there with a one-week mindset. Trying to prove the standard that we built this year is the type of football team that we are. So being present, taking each day as it comes and not getting too ahead of ourselves and not being nervous or afraid of a bad outcome, but having the confidence to go out there and go get a win. I think that confidence mindset is something that’s so big. The mindset thing is the No. 1 thing we talk about in how we win. So having that confidence, that preparation that leads to winning is at the front of our minds this week.
That’s got to be a hard balance. Josh was just talking about taking a three-yard gain instead of forcing a throw because there is no tomorrow. But you’ve got to play free. You’ve got to play loose. You can’t be tight in these moments. As somebody who’s been in these moments more than anybody, how do you navigate this? And still play freely while acknowledging “Everything is on the line?”
Knox: Falling back to the level of your training is a real thing. That’s a famous quote: “You don’t rise to the occasion. You fall to the level of your training.” So that training is stuff that we’ve been putting in since April. From OTAs to minicamp, through training camp, all the preseason games, all the regular season games to now, that preparation has been put in to where now that the gauntlet’s here. We’re going to fall back to that level of preparation that we’ve already put in. So having that under our belts, that also is what builds that confidence — knowing we’ve been here before. We know what it looks like to win games. We know what it looks like to do things the right way. So you don’t have to press, you don’t have to do anything special, you don’t have to do anything above and beyond what the play calls for you to do. Just execute your job the way you know you’re supposed to execute it one play at a time.
What makes this team different than any of the past ones you’ve been in? You’ve got to win three road games. We always hear that every team is “different.” So what gives you confidence that like this is the team that could finally do it?
Knox: Every year, it’s a brand-new team. This team has never played in the playoffs before. This locker room feels so close. The chemistry that we have with each other, the ways that we’re able to hang out outside the building. There’s a genuine family-style of love that I feel like all these guys have for each other. And that’s what makes it so fun to play for a team like this. When you know your brother’s got your back, he knows that you’ve got his back. That type of camaraderie is what really makes this team special. And we’ve had that in the past, but I think there’s an awesome level at which I can feel that style of chemistry. And it gives you a little extra motivation to like go out there and give it your all because you know your buddy, your brother right next to you is doing the same thing for you.
Now, you’re changing diapers ‘round the clock so it’s probably hard to go get beers with the boys. If I want to hang out with a buddy, I’ve got to put it in the calendar two months in advance.
Knox: 100%. I’m starting to figure that part out.
What have you guys done outside of this building? You and your teammates?
Knox: We love doing tight end dinners every week. Every now and then, Josh will have guys over to his house. Dalton will have guys over to his house. We like watching the Monday Night Football games together. Obviously now for me, those are a little bit fewer and further between. But still, it’s not like we can go golf when there’s a foot of snow outside. But it’s the little things. It’s sitting in the locker room for 10 extra minutes talking about the game, talking about anything with the boys after a big win. Little moments like that are so important. And it’s also those moments that I know I’ll remember forever. Guys that retire miss the game and miss little things about football but — more than anything — they miss being around the guys. So prioritizing that, making that important is something that this team has been really good at, and I think that’s what makes us feel so special.
We talked at length in the spring of 2022. You’ve been through a lot in life since then. I can’t imagine the tragedy that you went through losing your brother. Now, you’ve welcomed a baby girl. What has that rollercoaster really been like?
Knox: To be frank, Jesus is the only way. I’m so grateful for everything he’s done in my life, for everything he’s blessed me with — with a beautiful wife, with a beautiful baby girl. I don’t fully understand everything that he does and why we lose people, why I lost my brother. But I know that he’s the perfect father and he’s in control of everything. So that gives me ultimate peace and I’ve got joy because I know that this life will be gone in the blink of an eye and, one day, I’ll be going to heaven and I’ll see my brother again. So I think having that peace, knowing that the Lord is in control and having that joy knowing that I’m going to see Luke again one day really allows me to be present and enjoy the moments I have now. And I’ve had some overwhelming gratitude for my wife and my daughter. It’s been such an incredible few weeks and so much fun hanging out with them in the house, holding my girl on my chest. Those are the moments I’m trying to savor as long as I can.
With Luke — when you find out about your brother — how did that hit you in that moment? And when it’s raw, how do you even answer that question of why?
Knox: At first I was in shock. I didn’t really know how to feel or what to feel. And then there was a long stretch where I was mad at God. Why do bad things like this happen? So that first reaction was probably anger, frustration, confusion. But then slowly, He just worked on my heart and over time, I came back around to realize He is perfect and He has everything under control. And even though I might not understand it now — I might not ever understand it in this life — but things happen for a reason according to His will and all we can do is try to steward the blessings he gives us, steward the time he gives us and grow his kingdom and be kingdom-minded. So that’s what’s really kept me grounded. It’s been a roller-coaster for sure, but I am so thankful for his consistency because I go through a lot of inconsistencies. So it’s awesome having a father like that that’s always, always consistent.
When you had your daughter, what was that moment like?
Knox: Marrying my wife and welcoming Noa into this world were the two greatest moments in my life. It was so surreal watching her be born, holding her for the first time, hearing her cry for the first time. As you know, as a father, words can’t really describe it. You can say as much as you want to about it, but you’ll never truly understand those emotions until you do it yourself. Just knowing that this baby girl is half of me and half of the woman that I love is the coolest feeling ever.
What time of day was she born? I always wonder what it’s like to go through that all in the middle of a football season.
Knox: She was born on Tuesday morning. It was perfect.
Are you getting much sleep?
Knox: I’m definitely getting more now. My wife is a superhero. She’s letting me get more sleep than she is because — when the offseason comes — I’m on full-time Dad duty. There’s no more me getting more sleep than her. But right now, it’s been awesome. I’ve been able to sleep some, but we’ve been finding our routine these last few weeks and it’s been a really fun experience so far.
Another tight end, Ben Watson, has a great book.
Knox: I actually read it, “The New Dad’s Playbook.” It’s a really good one. I got a lot of tips out of that one. It’s great.
How does all of this help you be the leader this team needs day to day? Everybody seems to point to Dawson Knox as a voice behind the scenes. What does that really look like?
Knox: Having a daughter definitely instills more of those leadership qualities naturally. Having a family to provide for now, knowing what it looks like to be a husband, to try to become a father. It gives you a big perspective. Football games become less important when you have a daughter to take care of and a daughter to go home and hold. So that perspective on life — knowing that football isn’t life or death — that really helps me and it helps me guide some other guys, too. You can’t stress yourself out to the point where you’re not playing well because you think this game is way more important than it is. So when you can play free, when you can play fast without that worry of something going wrong or worrying about everyone else and what they say about you, having that bigger picture perspective is something that helped me a lot of my career. It’s also something that I try to help some of these other guys see as well. And I think that’s what ultimately frees you up to play your best football.
That’s what we started talking about, right? Somehow getting to a place in this playoff game to be you, play free. I’ve sat down with Brandon Beane in the past and he has said sometimes you bring in a new crop of players and they don’t have those mental scars from past playoff losses. You’ve got them. In a roundabout way, you’ve figured out a way to enter the next playoff moment and know it’s not life or death.
Knox: That’s the best part. The sun’s going to come up. Jesus is still on the throne. I still have my wife and my daughter to go home to, a family that loves me. You can’t give football too much power or it’s going to end up ruling you. And then you’ll never be happy because even if you win the Super Bowl, you’ll just be chasing the next one. So taking everything as it comes with the perspective of, “I’m going to give it everything I got, but at the same time, it’s not life or death,” finding that happy medium is so important for people to understand.
But that’s hard. People treat football like it is bigger than anything else. Aliens could present themselves tomorrow and I think a lot of people would care about it for 10 minutes before saying: “My team lost, that player’s responsible, F him.” A lot of people care way more about football than major things happening in the world. Being in that arena with the ball in your hand, dealing with that as a professional athlete cannot be easy.
Knox: No, that’s real. And that’s something you’ve got to learn. Especially my first couple of years — it was hard. I was reading comments. I was listening to too many people and worried about what other people thought of me. I was paralyzing myself with fear of messing up. And then something clicked where I was like, “You know what? I know what I’m capable of. God’s given me this opportunity to go play football. He’s blessed me with these abilities. I’m just going to go do it. Screw what everyone else thinks.” And then it started being easier. It became more freeing. I was playing better. I was happier. Even when I messed up, I was like, “You know what? Forget about it. There’s going to be another play.” And a big thing that’s been awesome for me is I haven’t been on social media in probably two, maybe three years. One of my agent’s assistants runs it for me. So if I need to post anything for business or a charity, they take care of that for me.
No FOMO? You don’t miss it at all?
Knox: For a week or two, for sure. And now I can’t imagine going back to it. Just the way I felt it drag me down with time and with too much worry about what everyone else is doing or saying or thinking, it’s extremely freeing being off of it.
OK, Jordan Poyer got me on breath work and ayahuasca a couple of weeks ago. Now I have to get off Twitter for good. It can be awful.
Knox: Before you know it, two hours are gone.
When was that turning point for you?
Knox: Going into the 2023 season social-media wise. And going into my third year was when I was like, “You know what? Why would you worry about messing up? Just go out there, enjoy it, be thankful that you have this opportunity and go do what you know you can. If you proved you can do it, go out there, have fun and do it.”
This past offseason, I chatted with Dalton and he referenced you a lot as someone who helped him through everything. That’s what you’re talking about. He’s gotten to the same place where you can’t worry what’s being said.
Knox: You’re here for a reason. People believe in you. Prove the people that believe in you right, prove the doubters wrong and don’t give either of them too much say so in how you feel.
He's a terrific teammate and he's having a good year catching passes in key situations. You can see that Josh trusts him and looks for him a lot more this year than in the past when he had more options. I'd love to see him make some big plays on Sunday.