There is good news for Detroit Lions linebacker Jack Campbell, per the team, but details of his condition and whether he has motion in his extremities remain scarce following Monday’s latest update.
The Lions on Monday announced “preliminary indications are positive” for Campbell’s condition. But “out of respect for Jack and his family, we will not share further information at this time.”
“It’s positive, you know?” coach Dan Campbell told reporters. “So your prayers are working. Please continue to do that.”
Campbell, no relation to Jack Campbell, went so far as to call his defensive captain’s condition “a small setback.”
And while this is uplifting and paints a picture that the player’s medical situation is trending in a good direction, it leaves a lot unclear.
Specifically, no one has said whether Campbell has regained full or any mobility since he was removed from the Ford Field turf on Sunday on an immobility stretcher and cart.
Despite the vague nature of the situation, Dan Campbell shared how he and several of the team’s players visited Jack Campbell and his family at the hospital on Sunday evening.
“I got to go see him last night. It was good. It was positive,” Dan Campbell said. “… Got to see his parents, talk to his wife. And everybody’s in good spirits.
“And it’s about the recovery and it’s a small setback. That’s the family. They’re, you know, very positive.”
This was the third update on Campbell’s status the Lions have delivered since the end of their game against the Minnesota Vikings on Sunday.
Neither of the first two updates relieved concerns about whether Campbell had movement in his extremities, either.
That message, if it is to come at all, will have to continue to wait, perhaps out of caution that what is finally reported remains true.
Uncertainty was very much a worry to anyone who saw the play that led to Campbell’s problem.
Vikings tight end T.J. Hockenson caught a pass in the middle of the field and was soon sandwiched by two Lions’ defenders, including Campbell. The problem is Campbell arrived at the contact while falling to his knees and appeared to have his head slanted upward, so he made contact with his facemask rather than his shoulders and arms.
Campbell immediately collapsed and lay motionless, his arms dropping to his side. On a positive note, Campbell did not require help breathing.
The Lions are too familiar with neck and spinal cord injuries that derail NFL careers and change the direction of players’ lives.
Mike Utley’s career ended on Nov. 17, 1991, when the Lions guard fell forward and landed on his head while blocking against the Los Angeles Rams at the Pontiac Silverdome.
Utley fractured the vertebrae in his neck and severely damaged his spinal cord. Utley was paralyzed from the chest down despite the fact he famously flashed a thumbs-up sign as he was taken from the field, a gesture that became a symbol of his determination.
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Reggie Brown’s career ended on Dec. 21, 1997, when the Lions linebacker struck his head while making a tackle during a victory over the New York Jets. Brown eventually regained the ability to walk, but his was a life-threatening incident because he bruised his spinal cord and briefly stopped breathing.
He received emergency resuscitation, neck surgery and extensive rehabilitation.
Situations like this are seemingly impossible to forget.
“That’s difficult, you know, it’s difficult,” Dan Campbell said. “You don’t ever want to see somebody like that on the field, but when you see Jack, Jack never lays on the field ever, no matter what it is.
“And that’s when you’re like, it puts it in perspective … when you’re in the world we’re in, you know, you got to snap back, and it’s not an easy thing to do.”