16 years ago this weekend, New England Patriots linebacker did something he wasn’t sure he’d ever do again, play professional football.
The date was February 15th, 2005, and Bruschi had just won his third Super Bowl championship a week earlier, however, his life nearly changed forever after suffering a mild stroke caused by a blood clot.
After months of treatment and rehab, Bruschi was cleared to return to football and was back on the field as a defensive starter against the Buffalo Bills on October 29th, 2005.
For his efforts, Bruschi was later named the 2005 NFL Comeback Player of the Year and went on to play two more seasons for the Patriots before retiring in 2008.
On Saturday, Bruschi reflected back on the 16th anniversary of his NFL comeback with a posting to his Instagram account.
“6 years ago today I returned to the NFL as a stroke survivor”, Bruschi wrote. “We all have our comebacks in life. To all of you out there attempting yours…Go get it!!!”
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