Detroit Lions cornerback Morice Norris was taken off the field in an ambulance after an apparent head injury during a preseason game against the Atlanta Falcons on Friday. Following the injury, which took place at the start of the fourth quarter, both teams chose to let the clock run out before the referees suspended the game early.
Norris went down hard on a tackle after his head appeared to hit the leg of Falcons running back Nathan Carter on a tackle. Norris, who was diving for the tackle, seemed to lose consciousness after the contact.
Norris was tended to for several minutes before an ambulance came on to the field to take him off. Trainers and medical personnel stabilized Norris on the field, putting him on a backboard and bracing his head and neck, before loading him into the ambulance.
Lions head coach Dan Campbell gathered the entire team as Norris was taken off. Detroit and Atlanta then let the clock run before the referees called the game to an early end.
The officials seemed to cite the league in the decision to finish the game before the clock had expired the rest of the way: "Per New York, this game is suspended," the head referee said, with 6:33 still technically left in the fourth quarter.
The Lions won the game, 17-10.
After the game, Falcons head coach Raheem Morris said on the broadcast that it was a mutual decision to end the game.
"It was common ground, common courtesy. Didn’t like the look of [the injury]," Morris said. "I thought that was the right thing to do."
This is Norris' second season with the Lions. The cornerback signed with the team last year after going undrafted out of Fresno State. He played in two games last season.
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