How Falcons, Lions demonstrate ‘brotherhood’ of NFL players

The NFL fosters one of the most competitive environments in professional sports.

It turns former teammates into trash-talking opponents, family members into rivals and even the best of friends into temporary enemies.

But as the Falcons and Lions stood at midfield Friday night with their hands locked and heads bowed, all one could think about is the brotherhood shared by those who take the field.

“The silver lining is the brotherhood,” Lions coach Dan Campbell said after the exhibition game. “To see all those guys from that team (and) our team kind of come together and thinking about another player just means a lot.”

The gesture occurred after Lions safety Morice Norris was transported off the field by ambulance in the fourth quarter of Friday’s exhibition game between the Falcons and Lions in Mercedes-Benz Stadium.

Norris suffered the injury near his neck on a collision that occurred while he attempted to make a low tackle on running back Nathan Carter.

Norris posted a statement the next morning, sharing his updated condition — he said he is “all good” — but at the time, the event marked a scary situation for everyone involved. The Falcons’ sideline took a knee and the Lions emptied toward midfield as the stadium fell silent.

But it was also an opportunity for two teams who typically pour their hearts out onto the field to come together and support each other.

“They’re so emotional about the game and so emotional about what we do,” Falcons coach Raheem Morris said of the players. “They’ve got a lot of respect for the other players in this game, and that was the ultimate show of it by the teams right there.”

The Lions immediately left their sideline to circle Norris after his injury and as medical personnel loaded him into the ambulance.

Campbell then called the group together for a huddle, where he shared the team would take a knee on each play for the rest of the game.

But the Lions did not have to waste their time because their opponents — who entered the night with the intent of pounding them — were already in full support.

Falcons quarterback Emory Jones lined up to take a snap — with most in attendance assuming the game would resume — and stood there, letting the game clock run down from 14:30.

The Falcons’ offense and the Lions’ defenders then circled near the midfield logo to pray for Norris in a show of solidarity during a moment of fear. And with 6:33 left on the clock, the NFL office in New York suspended the game.

Because at that moment in time, there were needs far more important than football.

“Raheem Morris is a class act,” Campbell said of the two coaches uniting to end the contest. “He’s the ultimate class act. We agreed that it just didn’t feel right to finish that game.”