Only days earlier, DeMarcus Ware had been laying on the turf in Dallas, unclear on what was happening around him and unsure if he’d ever play football again.
It was December 2009 and Ware, playing for the Cowboys, had been hit in the head rushing San Diego quarterback Phillip Rivers. Teammates gathered around him. He recalls Marcus Spears above him saying, “DeMarcus, will you please move?”
Several hours later, he was released from the hospital with the best possible news news: A neck sprain, but no other damage.
The problem: Dallas had a short week of preparation before playing Sean Payton’s 13-0 New Orleans Saints on Saturday night.