PHILADELPHIA — It had been two weeks since Byron Evans turned down a multi-million dollar contract when he planted his white cleat into the turf. Evans was a few months from turning 31 but the Eagles linebacker was still playing at a high level, seeming to get better with age halfway through his eighth NFL season.
This — a routine play in November of 1994 at Veterans Stadium — felt like another tackle on the way to that elusive Pro Bowl trip.
But then Bill Romanowski, Evans’ fellow linebacker, dove into the fray. He crashed into Evans’ right side, breaking his leg and tearing ligaments in his knee. Evans never had a chance. His leg was stuck in the Vet’s unforgiving artificial turf, a thin surface that didn’t give the same way as natural grass. His career — just like that contract negotiation — was finished.
