The scary side of football reared its ugly head for the Detroit Lions in week eight. The Lions beat the Minnesota Vikings to improve to 5-2, but the game was the least of everyone's concern, as linebacker Jack Campbell went down with an apparent head/neck injury and left the field on a cart.
After a couple of updates from the Lions, Campbell released his own statement on Wednesday in which he shared that he's making progress.
But how is the team handling it? Head coach Dan Campbell said they're going to try to use it as motivation.
"There's no easy way to do this, but we have to acknowledge it. Let's talk about it and make sure we know," Campbell said. "But I also know they're not postponing this game. And we know the only way to really honor Jack and what he really wants is to make sure that we're locked in and ready to go. Otherwise, what just came about, we're throwing it away in a sense.
"I think we owe it to him; we owe it to all of ourselves to make sure we're locked in and we make the most of this. It's a balance. You're humans and you want to acknowledge it, and it's a lot. But if it's weighing that heavy, and that's where your mind is at, it's not going to be good going into this game, and that's where you get hurt as well."
How Lions players are moving forward after Jack Campbell's injury
It's easy to understand why it must be difficult to keep playing after seeing one of your teammates get carted off the field. You might be thinking about how it could happen to you, or you're just hoping your teammate is okay, but you forget about the game either way. Then, you have to lock back in and keep playing football.
Lions quarterback Jared Goff said the best thing they can do for Campbell is to stay focused on the task at hand.
"It's been hard. You see something very real affect our sport and somebody that you love, somebody that you're so close to, and it's obviously so much bigger than just football," Goff said. "You're happy that things are moving in the right direction, but yeah, there's still some emotion attached to it and how scary it was. I think the best thing we can do is play how he would want us to play and kind of honor him in that way. I know he doesn't want any attention (or) fanfare; he just wants us to go out there and handle our business, and that's what we plan to do."
Losing Campbell will be especially tough on the defense, of course, as he was a true leader. Not only is he Detroit's leading tackler by far (57 - next closest is Chuck Clark with 44), but his presence in the locker room will be missed as well. Fellow linebacker Derrick Barnes said the rest of the season is dedicated to No. 46.
"My mentality is to pick up wherever he left off, and it's inspired a lot of us," Barnes said. "From now on, (everything) is for him."
The Lions visit the Miami Dolphins for Week 9, and it will be their first away game since beating the Arizona Cardinals 45-21 on Oct. 11.
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