Scary injuries are sadly nothing new in the NFL. But rarely is it a head coach taken off the field on a stretcher in front of a hushed crowd.
Texans head coach Gary Kubiak put a scare into everyone Sunday night when he grabbed his head and fell to the ground in agony as his team left the field during halftime. He remained on the ground for a few minutes as he was attended to by trainers and paramedics. Eventually he was put on a stretcher and taken to an ambulance to be transported to the local hospital.
There still isn’t much information out there on exactly what happened to him, though the Texans have said he didn’t suffer a heart attack. Defensive coordinator Wade Phillips downplayed the situation to NBC’s Michelle Tafoya coming out of halftime, but he was clearly in considerable pain during the whole event.
Houston’s ABC13 posted some really scary video of Kubiak during the incident.
It’s good to hear Monday morning that Kubiak is resting comfortably in the hospital and undergoing tests, but he is conscious and talking with his family.
ESPN’s Adam Schefter reported Monday morning that Kubiak “was given Tissue plasminogen activator (tPA), a protein that breaks down blood clots in people who suffer strokes, per sources.”
That doesn’t necessarily mean he suffered a stroke, but it’s certainly an added dimension to the drama.
It’s also eerie coming just one day after Denver head coach John Fox collapsed on the golf course and had to be hospitalized. He is now undergoing surgery on a faulty heart valve and will be sidelined for a month or more.
Follow Metro New York Sports Editor Mark Osborne on Twitter @MetroNYSports.
