Morice Norris injury update: Emotional Dan Campbell offers latest on DB after frightening collision

In the aftermath of Morice Norris’ scary injury suffered in Friday’s preseason game, Dan Campbell stepped to the postgame press conference to meet with reporters. The Detroit Lions coach was visibly emotional as he got to the podium following the decision to suspend the matchup against the Atlanta Falcons.

Campbell confirmed Norris was heading to the hospital, breathing, talking and had some movement. However, he could not provide much more of an update from there. He said the team was praying for the second-year DB out of Fresno State and encouraged others to do the same.

That said, Campbell pointed out the situation is one of the dark sides of the game of football. He acknowledged the violence in the game, but added the “brotherhood” between players on both sidelines stands out in those moments.

“It’s just an eye-opener,” Campbell said. “It hits. It hits a little different and it puts things in perspective. Man, it’s a violent game.

“We love it, but when something like this happens, the silver lining is the brotherhood. To see all those guys – from that team, our team – come together and everybody’s thinking about another player, it just means a lot.”

Norris suffered the injury in the fourth quarter when he attempted to tackle Falcons running back Nathan Carter. Norris’ helmet connected with Carter’s knee and his body immediately went stiff. His legs began to spasm shortly after the collision.

As the two teams sorted through next steps, they ultimately decided to suspend the rest of the game. Campbell specifically credited Falcons coach Raheem Morris, who was visibly emotional as he spoke with the broadcast while he left the field.

“Raheem Morris is a class act,” Campbell said. “He’s the ultimate class act. We agreed that it just didn’t feel right to finish that game. That man’s a class act. Always has been.”

Shortly after Norris’ injury, Dan Campbell gathered his team. He shared his message – which was a simple one. He encouraged the Lions players to pray for their teammate and informed them of the plan to suspend the rest of the game.

“I just told them to pray for him because at that point, we didn’t have much,” Campbell said. “He was breathing, so I shared that and said please pray for him. I told them, we’re taking knees. We’re going to take knees for the rest of the game – they are and we are until this thing’s over.”

Morice Norris appeared in just two games last season as a rookie. That came after he spent two years at Fresno State after starting his college career at the junior college level. With Fresno, he totaled 116 tackles, 18 tackles for loss and 4.5 sacks, along with two interceptions.