Injured Seahawk Ricardo Lockette returns to stadium

SEATTLE – Within two unforgettable weeks, Ricardo Lockette went from unconscious on a field in Texas, worried if he was going to walk again or even live to “euphoric” standing atop his home stadium.

The Seahawks’ wide receiver and special-teams ace was wearing a neck brace and a smile Sunday night at CenturyLink Field. He was also wearing a T-shirt depicting his gloved hand formed in the shape of an “L.” That’s the signal he gave his teammates, the AT&T Stadium crowd and a national-television audience Nov. 1 while he was getting stretchered off the field to a Dallas hospital for neck surgery following a huge hit.

“I was thinking, ‘I can’t talk to the boys, so what can I do to notion them to win the game – keep fighting?’ Lockette said Sunday in the Seahawks’ locker room following Seattle’s 39-32 loss to Arizona. “What came to mind was ‘Love my Brothers’ – and love each other.”

Just before Sunday’s kickoff, Lockette helped 91-year-old Congressional Gold Medal honoree Clayton Pitre raise the Seahawks’ “12th Man” flag. It was the Seahawks’ annual “Salute to Service” game. Pitre is a 91-year-old Congressional Gold Medal honoree who was a corporal in the United States Marine Corps in World War II,

Seattle’s sellout crowd of more than 69,000 roared seeing Lockette smiling on the platform next to the flag pole overlooking the south end zone.

“Amazing. Euphoric,” Lockette said of the ovation. “To have that many people cheer for you and care for you who have been praying for you is something further than my dreams could reach. I am forever in debt for that.

“It was one of the best days of my life.”

Thirteen days earlier, Lockette had surgery at Baylor Medical Center in Dallas to fix disc and ligament damage. He also sustained a concussion from an open-field hit under his chin delivered in the open field on a punt by Cowboys safety Jeff Heath.

“It was great to be out here rooting the guys on,” Lockette said. “If I can walk, if I can breathe, I will be supporting the Seahawks and supporting my boys.”

Lockette’s season is over; he went on injured reserve Saturday. The Seahawks don’t know for sure whether the 29-year old will be able to play next year or again.

But Lockette says that’s a yes.

“For sure. For sure,” he said.

“I am a rock star.”

Not only does he expect to play again, Lockette said “I expect to be a Pro Bowler.

“This is a real-life walk in the park for me. A little dinged up in the neck. I will be all right.”

Lockette described his feelings as he was initially motionless, then able to move his hands and arms, then strapped to a stretcher with his helmet still on Nov. 1. Seahawks players and coaches stayed at his side during the approximately 10 minutes it took emergency personnel to stabilize him then remove him from the stadium. He went directly to Baylor Medical Center in Dallas, had the surgery on his neck the next day that lasted more than five hours, then was released from the hospital three days later

“It was one of the craziest things I have ever been a part of,” he said. “You can’t feel your legs. You can’t feel your arms. You can’t really respond. You don’t really know what is going to happen in the next couple of seconds. You don’t know if you are going to blackout. You don’t know if you are ever going to get feeling back in your body. You don’t know if this is it.

“You just have a really blank mind, and then all the important things start to matter. You start thinking about your family (his parents were at the game in Dallas and were with him at the hospital there). You start thinking about, ‘Am I ever going to see my kids again?’ Just the important stuff.

”The crazy thing is, once I got my voice back and could talk again all I cared about was winning the game.”

The Seahawks did, 13-12, while he was at the hospital.

He flew back to the Seattle area in a private plane early last week and was hugging teammates in the locker room after practices as they prepared to play the Cardinals.

“I have to wear (the neck brace) for about six weeks. Then I will start rehabbing,” Lockette said. “Once that is done, we will hit the weight room full speed.”

After the game, quarterback Russell Wilson addressed the media wearing a T-shirt matching the one Lockette wore Sunday night.

”I usually try to dress all whatever — fancy, I guess,” Wilson said. “But this was thinking about Ricardo. This game’s a lot bigger than football. He’s a true friend.

”We just love him to death. We cherish him. We cherish who he is. I’m just praying that he continues to heal and continues to stay positive.

“He’s one of the best guys I know.”