DENVER — P.J. Locke had a dilemma. He badly wanted to join his Broncos teammates and play in the game Saturday night against the Lions in Detroit.
It was touch-and-go last week as to whether Locke would play because of a neck/throat contusion that led to other issues, like having air trapped for a time in the lung area. His condition cleared to the point where Locke received the medical green light to play in the game -- but not fly.
Not fly? Has it been mentioned the game was in Detroit?
The air pressure and altitude from flying were deemed unconducive to Locke’s medical conditions.
“They told me they weren’t going to let me fly, so I said, ‘What else can we do? Let’s think of something else,’’ Locke said in an interview with 9NEWS at his locker Thursday. “We’re playing for the playoffs and I was going to do everything possible to be there with my brothers. The situation we’re in, I was going to do everything I could to play”
Hop in, guys.
While the other Broncos coaches and players flew by charter from Denver to Detroit on Friday evening, Locke was driven there by team officials.
They drove from Denver to Detroit and back. Nearly 40 hours and 2,600 miles round trip.
After practice last Friday, Locke started rolling away from Broncos headquarters around 3 p.m. Mountain Time in an RV along with head of Broncos security Keith Bishop, another security officer and assistant trainer Zach Lewis. Bishop and his security partner did the driving. Lewis was along to monitor Locke’s medical situation.
Nearly 20 hours and 1,300 miles later, Locke and his crew pulled into the team hotel outside Detroit between noon and 1 p.m. EST Saturday. The first set of team buses took off from the hotel to Ford Field for the game just a couple of hours later.
The highlight of the road trip?
“They wanted me to sleep as much as I could, so I wasn’t checking out at the sights or anything,’’ Locke said. “We really only stopped for gas. I remember waking up and we weren’t there, yet.’’
Beau Lowery, the Broncos’ vice president of player health and performance, and head trainer Vince Garcia organized the trip from a medical perspective. The Broncos’ operations and personnel department took care of the logistical arrangements.
As soon as Locke arrived at the team hotel outside Detroit, he was given a one-hour flush message at the hotel. Then he ate his pregame meal with the team and got ready to hop on the bus.
The game between the Broncos and Lions kicked off a mere seven hours after he arrived at the team hotel. Locke was out there for the first play as a Broncos starting safety alongside Justin Simmons. There was no way after all that driving Locke’s legs had his usual speed and quickness, and by his own admission, he didn’t have his best game.
“I left some plays out there,’’ Locke said.
Who didn’t? The wear of playing three road games covering four time zones (including practice preparation at home) in 13 days showed in the Broncos’ performance as they got roughed up by the Lions, 42-17.
Not that any Broncos player could dare complain to Locke.
He had four tackles and a pass deflection in the game in what has to be considered the yeoman’s effort of the year.
Incredibly, the Broncos kept Locke’s road trip quiet for nearly a week. There was some whispering among his teammates at his locker after the game, but no one spilled. And to think this was a standalone, nationally televised game.
The team declined comment for this story, and Locke wasn’t telling anyone until he was approached by a 9NEWS reporter at his locker Thursday following a tip from outside the organization.
“I didn’t want to be a distraction,’’ Locke said. “And we didn’t win. Would have been better if we won.”
It’s still a remarkable story of dedication and determination.
A story that capped a harrowing week for Locke. He had taken a helmet to the throat in the Broncos’ previous week’s 24-7 win against the Los Angeles Chargers.
“It was a freakish thing,’’ Locke said. “They were telling me they hadn’t seen it before, what I had.”
The throbbing pain in the stricken area was one thing.
“I was getting treatment but then it started to get worse,’’ Locke said. “By the third day my air was trapped in my throat and then in my lung area and there was air trap in the heart area.’’
He had an EKG, among other tests. He said he underwent anesthesia for one exploratory test.
“That finally gave me peace of mind,’’ Locke said. “The trainers and doctors, hats off to them for what they did for me.”
After the game against the Lions? You guessed it. As Broncos coaches and players flew back to Denver on the team charter, Locke hopped back in the RV with his crew – assistant trainer Paul Burant traded places with Lewis for the ride home – and made the long trek across the Midwest, arriving back home early Sunday evening.
“Not something I would recommend,’’ Locke said. “But you do everything you can to be there with your team. Just wish we would have won. I feel good now. New week. All we’re focusing on now is New England.”
The game is here in Denver. Locke can drive from his own home to the game Sunday night. And then the next day he can wake up in his own bed and celebrate Christmas Day with his wife and son.
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