On a routine punt play in the second quarter of Thursday night’s Broncos-Colts matchup, Indianapolis tight end Brandon Williams took a helmet-to-helmet hit and remained on the field for several minutes before he was carted off on a stretcher with what was later reported on the NBC broadcast as a head injury.
Williams was blocking on the play when a Denver player engaged with him and their helmets made contact. Trainers removed the facemask of Williams’s helmet before strapping him to a stretcher and taking him off the field. NBC’s Heather Cox reported on the broadcast that Williams had movement in his extremities and that the stretcher was used for precautionary reasons. Williams was taken to a local hospital for evaluation.
Colts players came out to see him before he left the field.
The 30-year-old has caught 13 passes for 121 yards this year and has mostly spent his five-year NFL career as a contributor on special teams. Williams has spinal stenosis, which ended his college career at Oregon, initially sparking concerns that this injury could be to his spine, but the Colts clarified that the injury he suffered on Thursday was to his head.
The injury is reminiscent of the one Steelers linebacker Ryan Shazier suffered earlier this month, which itself was not the first terrifying moment in a prime-time NFL game this year.
