ATLANTA, Georgia — Detroit Lions safety Morice Norris shared a social post Saturday, saying he’s OK and thanking people for their support after he was taken off the field in an ambulance late in a preseason game against the Atlanta Falcons.
Norris reposted a screenshot about being grateful along with a Bible verse, adding a message of his own.
“Amen Amen,” he posted on his Instagram story.
“I’m all good man don’t stress,” he said, adding he appreciates all of the check-ins and support.
Norris was in stable condition late Friday night after he was attended to for about 20 minutes by medical personnel and taken to an Atlanta hospital.
The 24-year-old Norris was hurt with 14:50 left in the preseason game after hitting Falcons running back Nathan Carter. He hit Carter with his facemask facing the running back’s midsection and his head snapped back after assisting on the tackle.
When play resumed, Atlanta quarterback Emory Jones snapped the ball as players from both teams stood at the line of scrimmage as the clock continued to run.
“Usually you see a couple trainers out there,” Lions quarterback Kyle Allen said. “It’s never good when they bring out the stretchers.”
With 6:31 remaining in the fourth quarter, an official announced the game had been suspended “per New York” with the Lions leading the Falcons 17-10.
Detroit coach Dan Campbell and Atlanta coach Raheem Morris made the decision to not finish the game.
“Raheem Morris is a class act,” Campbell said. “He’s the ultimate class act. We agreed it just didn’t feel right to finish that game.”
Norris, a former Fresno State standout, played in eight games last season after earning a spot on the team as an undrafted rookie.
NFL preseason games ended early in consecutive weeks two years ago.
New England’s game at Green Bay in Week 2 of the 2023 preseason was called off when Patriots cornerback Isaiah Bolden was carted off in the fourth quarter. Bolden appeared to collide with teammate Calvin Munson while attempting to make a hit on a pass completion to Malik Heath of the Packers. Bolden was taken to a hospital and released the next day.
A week later, a game between Miami and Jacksonville was not completed after Dolphins receiver Daewood Davis was carted off in the fourth quarter. Davis was hurt when he ran a slant route and was attempting to catch a pass when he was hit by Jaguars linebacker Dequan Jackson. Davis was released from the hospital a day later.
The two frightening injuries happened some eight months after Buffalo Bills safety Damar Hamlin went into cardiac arrest and had to be resuscitated on the field during a regular-season game at Cincinnati in January 2023. Hamlin has enjoyed a remarkable recovery and resumed football the following season and spent last year as a Bills starter.
“You sign up for football and you understand the risk, you understand the injury risk,” Allen said. “You never think something like that is going to happen. At the end of the day we’re all out here as football players. We may be on 32 different teams but we’ve all played football our whole lives and had our own injuries and been through it.”
AP Sports Writers Charles Odum and John Wawrow contributed.
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