After what had already been a pretty physical week between the New England Patriots and Green Bay Packers, Saturday night’s exhibition game took a scary turn as one of the Patriots’ own went down with a frightening injury.
The play happened with just 10:38 left to go in the contest, with Packers quarterback Sean Clifford dropping back to pass on a 3rd-and-7 from the New England 25 yard line.
Clifford fired a throw to receiver Malik Heath, who was battling against Bolden at the line before cutting his route in and making the reception. However, linebacker Calvin Munson came in low to put a hit on Heath and instead collided with Bolden, striking him in the head with his shoulder as he closed in.
Scary moment. Isaiah Bolden took a hit to the head from Calvin Munson and stayed down on the field. pic.twitter.com/bM1MuAytvV
— Zack Cox (@zm_cox) August 20, 2023
Bolden was spun around by the impact and instantly dropped to the ground motionless, with trainers sprinting out there to try and help him.
He was down on the ground for a significant amount of time, with players gathering around and taking a knee as medical staff came onto the field.
The stadium was silent as players looked on, with the medical personnel meticulously working to care for him. Bolden was eventually strapped to a medical board and carted off the field, with teammates clearly upset by what was transpiring.
Watching the broadcast as Bolden was wheeled off the field, it was certainly worrisome. His arms were strapped to his side, and his helmet remained on his head (neither of which are necessarily unusual in these situations), but his eyes were wide open as he was driven off the field, and the look he seemed to have explained why the game was called off.
It was a frightening sight, and the fact both head coach Bill Belichick and Packers coach Mike Lafluer agreed to call the game with 10:29 left to go after the play is yet another reason why everyone will likely be on pins and needles waiting for an update.
UPDATE 11:32pm: The team just released a statement with some encouraging news on Bolden’s condition:
“Patriots cornerback Isaiah Bolden sustained an injury during the fourth quarter of tonight’s game. He had feeling in all his extremities, but has been taken to a local hospital for further tests and observation.”
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Ian Logue is a Seacoast native and owner and senior writer for PatsFans.com, an independent media site covering the New England Patriots and has been running this site in one form or another since 1997.
