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I know that Mangini doesn’t like to give out medical information, but given the seriousness with which the NFL is taking concussions—just take a look at Smith’s suspension and fine if you need proof, the league is made such a strong statement to avoid head injuries—fans deserved a little more on Smith’s health.

The Jets also elected to just release two locker room interviews yesterday, those of S Abram Elam and WR Laveranues Coles, rather than transcribe Smith’s detail-filled interview. Here’s Smith on his intention with the hit. One note, “they” refers to fans who think he meant to hit dirty—not the NFL.

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Here’s the story.

FLORHAM PARK, N.J. – Eric Smith was suspended for a game and fined $50,000 for a flagrant hit on Anquan Boldin in Sunday’s 56-35 win over the Cardinals at the Meadowlands.

The helmet-to-helmet collision Sunday was termed a fragrant violation of an NFL rule designed to protect players who are in “defenseless postures,” as Boldin was in the end zone after Kerry Rhodes made contact from his right side with 27 seconds left.

Cardinals spokesman Mark Dalton said Boldin was fully mobile and was “resting comfortably at home” yesterday. But if you ask Smith, a Jets safety, what happened during the clash with the Cardinals’ wide receiver, he can’t tell you. He simply has no memory of the collision – or of losing consciousness.

“I really don’t remember the play, leaving the field,” Smith said yesterday. ” … Things are a little fuzzy.”

When Jets coach Eric Mangini was asked if his player had a concussion, he would not say.

“As far as I know, ‘groggy’ would be the classification I would give it,” Mangini said.

Smith was not specific, but he seemed to be taking the head injury more seriously.

“It’s just something you’ve got to take day by day. You never know how long or how soon you’re going to be back from something like that,” Smith said.

Holding several pieces of paper with the name of a local radiology center on the cover sheet, Smith spoke about regaining awareness in the locker room after the game, and of watching a replay of the collision on television. He said the helmet-to-helmet impact was not intentional.

“When I was going in, when I was going to break up the ball, watching it on film today, it looked like Kerry hit him in the back and when he did, he went down, and brought him into the line I was at,” Smith said.

Mangini said that Smith was not the kind of player to hurt someone intentionally.

“Knowing him as a person, that’s the last thing he’d ever want to do is harm someone like that,” Mangini said.

Smith said he was glad to learn that Boldin was awake and talking when he watched the play afterward, thanks to an update from teammate Abram Elam, who played in the same high school league as Boldin growing up. Elam talked to Boldin’s mother Sunday and was told Boldin was released from Mount Sinai Hospital that night.

“It was very difficult,” Elam said. “I saw Eric Smith, who is my teammate, on the ground and a friend of mine, Anquan Boldin. It was really tough knowing in this game, every moment out there on the field, you put your life in jeopardy sometimes. I am grateful they were able to get off the field.”

Asked if this was his worst nightmare as a player, Smith again couldn’t answer.

“I don’t really remember it, so it’s hard to say,” Smith said. “So it was just like I saw it on TV.”