Vikings Captain Nearly Loses His Leg to Freak Injury

Minnesota Vikings linebacker Jordan Hicks exited a Week 10 matchup with the New Orleans Saints to what seemed to be an innocent leg injury on a collision with teammate Cam Bynum.

Hicks thought it was merely a bruised shin, tested it out on the sidelines and was cleared to return to the game. But after halftime, he knew something was wrong. Hicks returned to the bench from a third-quarter series and couldn’t lift his left leg. Heading back to the locker room, adrenaline faded as pain flooded over him.

Hicks had developed compartment syndrome in his right leg, a rare condition that results in pressure and swelling from internal bleeding.

I ended up in the fetal position, just lying there, trying to focus on breathing because it was so bad. It was excruciating pain.”

“It’s the deepest, darkest ache you can probably imagine,” Hicks said, per Vikings.com. “I was full-drenched [with] sweat, I’m twisting and turning, trying to get comfortable. Couldn’t get comfortable.

Hicks was rushed to a Minneapolis-area hospital and underwent emergency surgery that resulted in him being placed on injured reserve in Week 12.

Hicks, speaking to reporters this week for the first time since undergoing surgery on November 13 revealed he could have had his right leg amputated.

“I had no clue about anything like this before that situation, really even until after I woke up from surgery and heard the doctors say, ‘It’s a good thing you got in, because you could have lost your leg,’ ” he said. “Ever since then, I’ve heard countless stories of people having to get stuff amputated, having to get muscle taken out, having drop foot – permanent damage. Wild. Crazy. I’m thankful and blessed to be where I’m at.”