Another frightening moment in a Monday Night Football game.
This one took place in the fourth quarter of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers’ 31-14 loss to the Dallas Cowboys.
Wide receiver Russell Gage appeared to slip while trying to get to a short Tom Brady throw near the Cowboys’ 5-yard line.
Dallas safety Donovan Wilson’s right forearm then hit the right side of Gage’s helmet, bending his neck awkwardly.
Gage tried to get up a couple of times but could not.
Players from both teams surrounded the fifth-year player as medical personnel worked on him.
He was taken to a hospital.
“He has a concussion,” Bucs coach Todd Bowles said after the game. “They’ll also test him for potential neck injuries.”
Bowles was asked if Gage had movement in his extremities and said, “His fingers were moving when he was down there, I don’t know about the rest.”
The incident happened two weeks after the Buffalo Bills’ Damar Hamlin suffered a cardiac arrest on the field after making a tackle in a game against the Cincinnati Bengals.
“It was really tough — especially with what happened a couple of weeks ago,” Bucs inside linebacker Lavonte David said. “… We definitely hope he’s well. He was moving and stuff like that, that was a good sign. Definitely hope he’s OK.”
Tight end Cam Brate, who suffered a sprained neck in Week 6 and left the field on a stretcher added: “You hate to see a guy go down like that, especially with the game being kind of out of reach at that point. It’s really hard to see your teammate like that.”
