The gruesome injury suffered by Louisville guard Kevin Ware on Sunday in the NCAA Tournament inspired sympathy and strong reaction from people across the American spectrum, and that includes the NFL community.
Two players who have gone through similar injuries know how Ware is feeling, and they have reached out to him.
Joe Theismann joined “NFL AM” on Monday to talk about what a life-changing injury can be like.
“There will be a period of time where he thinks ‘woe is me,'” Theismann said, before adding he thinks Ware should be able to come back eventually.
Theismann, whose career famously was ended by Lawrence Taylor on “Monday Night Football,” sent a text to Ware on Sunday offering help with “anything he needed.”
“The emotional part of it is where I can maybe help walk him through it because I can tell him everything that he’s going to feel, I can tell him everything that he’s going to go through emotionally,” Theismann said.
Ware responded to Theismann, telling him he appreciated the words and looks forward to talking later.
“You hate to see anybody get hurt,” Theismann said. “But when you have an injury like he had, so similar like I had happen to me, you start to relive all the moments and what he’s going through. With a broken leg, the pain is instantaneous and absolutely excruciating. But then all of the sudden, the body shuts down that section of the leg or wherever it might be.”
Ware underwent surgery on his tibia Sunday night. Former Louisville running back and current Chicago Bear Michael Bush, who experienced a similar injury in college, also got Ware’s phone number and will call him Monday afternoon.
“There’s going to be times where he feels alone,” Bush said Monday on “NFL AM.” “I just want him to hang in there because it’s going to tough.”
Follow Gregg Rosenthal on Twitter @greggrosenthal.
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