Standing Tall

In the matter of a few seconds, a strong, promising young Buffalo Bills player lay paralyzed and very mortal after a violent collision on the second-half kickoff return during the opening weekend of the 2007 NFL season. Kevin Everett, tight end and special team's player, went helmet-to-helmet with Denver Broncos return man, Domenik Hixon, with all the force a 6'4, 260-pound 25-year-old can muster while running full-bore. Fate was on Kevin's side. Only a few days prior, the medical-training staff had practiced a spinal-cord drill supervised by Dr. Andrew Cappuccino, an orthopedic surgeon. Dr Cappuccino was on the sidelines during this game as a regular member of the Buffalo Bills medical staff, one of the few NFL reams to be so staffed. Cappuccino determined that Everett was quadriplegic, as he lay on the field of Ralph Wilson Stadium. And so began a real-life drill. While controversial and affressive medical care, Kevin began a tougher challenge than any Sunday-football warrior.