The Las Vegas Raiders prepared for Sunday’s game against the Cleveland Browns with the expectation that tackle Trent Brown would suit up after previously missing a game due to a positive COVID-19 test. However, he had to make an emergency trip to the hospital before kickoff. A botched pre-game IV resulted in a potentially lethal condition.
According to NBC Sports, some air got into Brown’s bloodstream as part of the IV mishap. He required immediate medical attention and had to be “wheeled out” of the locker room. Brown remained in the hospital overnight for further testing and observation. As a result of the incident, the NFL Players Association launched an investigation in an attempt to determine how the dangerous mishap occurred.
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“Honestly, I’m human; I got a little scared for Trent,” quarterback Derek Carr said, per Paul Gutierrez of ESPN. “I was like, Man, I hope he’s OK. We had no clue what was happening. All of a sudden, we come in, and they’re wheeling him out and I’m like, Bro, what is going on? It was crazy and so we prayed.”
“As a team, we prayed for him. We made sure he was OK, his family, because I’m sure they were scared to death,” Carr continued. “But then, you have to compartmentalize what just happened with we have to go win a football game in the worst weather I’ve ever played in my life.”
Despite worrying about Brown’s condition, the Raiders went out and faced the Browns in inclement weather. They defeated the AFC North team on the road despite dealing with gusts of wind and missed field goals. Head coach Jon Gruden met with the media following the game and downplayed the severity of the incident citing a lack of knowledge.
“We’re just going to say that he got ill here in the locker room and he’s being evaluated right now,” Gruden said. “We’ll update you as soon as we [know] something. But I’m told everything is OK. We were expecting Trent to play today; he had a great practice on Friday.”
Brown originally joined the Raiders as a free agent prior to the 2019 season following a Super Bowl LIII win with the New England Patriots. He signed a four-year, $66 million contract that included $36.25 million guaranteed. The deal made him the highest-paid offensive tackle in the league and created expectations that he would immediately improve the Raiders’ offensive line. He ended his first season with the team ranked as the third-best tackle in the NFL but has struggled to remain on the field in 2020 due to various health issues.
