10:30 a.m. ET
Goff says Campbell injury ‘brings you back to reality’
Richard Silva
Detroit Lions quarterback Jared Goff put it best when asked about Jack Campbell’s neck injury, calling the situation both “scary” and “surreal.”
“The Jack deal was definitely scary,” Goff said after the 19-15 win over the Vikings. “It just brings you back to reality for a moment, which is that he’s a husband and a father. It’s scary. We’re praying for him and hoping he’ll be okay. If I know anyone who’s strong enough to go through something like this, it’ll be him.”
“It’s always surreal. Stuff like this happens, then they blow the whistle and it’s gone again,” Goff added. “Yeah, it’s tough, it’s really tough. You have to remember that these guys are humans and they’re dealing with things, and we’re humans as teammates and we’re dealing with that emotion. Yeah, it’s tough. I guess that’s the only way I can say it.”
10:10 a.m. ET
The Lions have a history of scary injuries on the field
John Niyo
Longtime Lions fans know all too well the dangers that haunt this game.
Earlier this season, the franchise celebrated the 35th anniversary of the 1991 team that reached the NFC Championship Game. And among the players honored during that “Homecoming” reunion week was Mike Utley, the lineman who suffered a spinal cord injury in a game against the Rams that season that left him paralyzed from the chest down. Six years later, linebacker Reggie Brown was temporarily paralyzed after a spinal cord contusion against the Jets and required life-saving CPR on the field at the Pontiac Silverdome. The only player in NFL history to die during a game was Chuck Hughes of the Lions, who suffered a heart attack on the field at the old Tiger Stadium in 1971.
10:01 a.m. ET
Lions ‘come back’, ‘turn it up’ for Campbell
Nolan Bianchi
Lions coach Dan Campbell, who played 10 seasons as an NFL tight end, described the bittersweet feeling of pulling himself together after a teammate goes down.
“It’s tough because you’re in that moment; you don’t know what’s going on,” he said after his team’s 19-15 win over the Vikings. “…So, it’s tough, but as athletes, coaches in this league, you have to lock in. I mean, that’s part of what it’s all about. Overcoming adversity in any shape, any shape, any form. easy.
“It’s not easy to do.”
Receiver Jameson Williams, who scored the game-winning touchdown after Jack Campbell was injured in the fourth quarter, said: “It was pretty hurtful for us. He’s captain of this team, he’s a great leader of this team. I pray for him a lot. It just motivated us a lot more. We got a stop on fourth down after that. The crowd was into it. The offense went and scored after that.
“I guess we just took it up a notch for our brother. He went out there, he put it all on the line every play for us, that’s why he has a ‘C’ on his chest.”
9:45 a.m. ET
What Aidan Hutchinson said about Jack Campbell
Nolan Bianchi
Aidan Hutchinson said the Lions defense rallied around the idea that Jack Campbell would want them to finish the game against the Vikings strong in his absence.
“I think from that point, seeing something like that, him being down for that long, I think from that point it was for 4-6, man,” Lions defensive end Aidan Hutchinson said, referring to Campbell’s number.
The Lions gave up a touchdown after the extended and heartbreaking pause in action due to Campbell’s injury, but Detroit found its way to victory thanks to a stellar running game and some timely defensive stops.
“To me, it was exactly what we were all saying, at least what I was saying. Jack is such a guy…he would have wanted nothing more than to come back in that game and finish it, do it,” Hutchinson said.
9:15 a.m. ET
What happened on the field after Campbell’s fall
John Niyo
It was chaos. And then it was calm.
A strange and uncomfortable silence.
And as Jack Campbell, the heart and soul leader of the Lions’ defense, lay motionless on the Ford Field turf, face down after a clumsy tackle early in the fourth quarter.
Campbell went limp and fell to the ground after hitting Vikings tight end TJ Hockenson’s hip while making a tackle.
Lions medical staff quickly rushed onto the field to tend to Campbell, immobilizing his head and neck and finally removing his shoulder pads before carefully sliding him onto a backboard. Once that stretcher was loaded onto a waiting cart, the entire Lions team circled around to show their concern and offer encouragement. His wife, Megan, who was at the game with their 4-month-old son Cooper, was brought into the players’ tunnel before Campbell was transported to a local hospital to be evaluated for what the Lions described as a neck injury.
Kelvin Sheppard, the Lions’ defensive coordinator, gathered his unit on the sidelines to say a prayer. Afterward, Aidan Hutchinson, who was carted off the field with a broken leg two years ago in Dallas, had tears in his eyes as he gathered his teammates to say a few more words.
“I was just filled with a lot of emotion,” Hutchinson explained afterward, describing it as a “weird dynamic” that “no one really teaches you” how to deal with.
As that cart wound its way back up the tunnel, fraught with uncertainty, the stadium sound system played the unmistakable intro to AC/DC’s “Hells Bells,” signaling a fourth down play to come for the defense.
9:05 a.m. ET
Campbell was breathing and alert when he left the field
Richard Silva
Lions linebacker Jack Campbell was breathing and alert when he was taken off the field on a stretcher and transported to a local hospital for further evaluation following a neck injury, according to Lions coach Dan Campbell.
Brad Galli conducted a postgame interview with Campbell on the Lions Radio Network following Detroit’s 19-15 win over the Minnesota Vikings.
Jack Campbell was carted off the field after participating in a tackle on Vikings tight end TJ Hockenson with 14:48 remaining in the fourth quarter. Campbell remained motionless on the field for several minutes and the game was stopped while medical staff placed him on a backboard.
“Thoughts and prayers are with Jack Campbell and his family,” Dan Campbell said in his post-match press conference. “He’s in care. We don’t have any new information. We’ll keep you updated as it happens, but we’re thinking about him. We’re thinking about him.”
9:00 a.m. ET
Who is Jack Campbell?
Richard Silva
Jack Campbell, a native of Cedar Falls, Iowa, was the 18th overall pick in the first round of the 2023 NFL Draft by the Lions. At the University of Iowa, he won the William V. Campbell Trophy, known as the “Academic Heisman” award, and won the Butkus Award as the nation’s top linebacker.
With the Lions, he quickly solidified his role at middle linebacker, being named All-Pro last season in just his third year in the NFL. He finished second in the league in tackles with 176.
The 26-year-old Campbell, 6-foot-5 and 246 pounds, was named team captain for the first time this season.
His wife, Megan, with whom he welcomed his first child this summer, joined him in the ambulance, according to published reports. Cooper James Campbell was born on July 3.
Jack and Megan Campbell met at the University of Iowa, where she played on the women’s basketball team for two seasons before transferring to Drake.
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