EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. -- The dreaded cart. The courtesy clap for the injured.
New York Giants offensive lineman Nick Gates wanted no part of it. He had never needed it before the Thursday night game against Washington in Week 2 of last season.
Not until he heard his left leg go "crack, crack, pop" and started flopping back and forth while he laid on the grass at FedEx Field. The fibula and tibia were broken. There would be seven surgeries to follow, and a rehab that is still in progress.
The injury was so gruesome that NFL Network, which was broadcasting the game, refused to show the replay of Gates' leg getting caught underneath Washington defensive lineman Daron Payne.