Former New York Giants star and two-time Super Bowl champion Osi Umenyiora revealed he recently survived a serious health scare that left him hospitalized for weeks and in a coma for several days.
Umenyiora shared the ordeal on his return to “The Breakdown,” the show he co-hosts for NFL UK & Ireland, saying he went “through some real adversity.”
“I was in the hospital for almost a month,” he said. “I was in a coma for five days, had some extensive surgery. I was in a really, really bad place. And I find out right then and there who actually loved me because there were some people who showed up every single day. There were some people who came to see me when I was in a coma. There were some people who traveled from all across the world to come see me when I was at my lowest points.”
Umenyiora credited his longtime co-host Jason Bell for staying by his side throughout the ordeal, saying he could feel Bell’s presence even while unconscious.
“This man right here was by my side,” Umenyiora said. “I remember when I got up and I saw him for the first time, I just started crying because I could feel the love.
“So don’t you ever mistake what we got going on up here for something that’s not real because this is real, and I love you, J-Bell. I really, really appreciate everything you did. They told me that when I heard your voice, my heart rate started to spike, which was absolutely incredible.”
Umenyiora did not disclose details about the medical issue that led to his hospitalization.
The former defensive end played 11 seasons in the NFL, starring for the New York Giants and later the Atlanta Falcons. He was a two-time Pro Bowler and a key part of the Giants teams that stunned the New England Patriots in Super Bowl XLII and Super Bowl XLVI.
Umenyiora finished his career with 85 sacks in 161 games and is widely remembered as one of the most disruptive pass rushers of his era.
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