During the strict quarantine in the early days of the COVID-19 pandemic, there were little to no sports going on in the month of May.
Documentaries like ESPN’s “The Last Dance” was the most talked about ‘sporting event’ among fans and talk shows.
In a time of sports fans starving for content, ESPN released an E:60 documentary titled “Project 11” on May 1.
“Project 11” revealed Washington quarterback Alex Smith’s amazing story of recovery from not only a career-threatening leg injury but a life-threatening one too.
Seemingly millions of people tuned in because the documentary dominated the Twittersphere that weekend.
When the three-time Pro Bowler broke his leg on Nov. 18, 2018 against the Houston Texans, most of us thought it was one of those season-ending injuries that occur rather often in a violent sport like football.
Worse-case scenario: Smith played his last down in the NFL.
Little did we know Smith’s leg injury was actually life threatening.
That is why there really isn’t a debate on who the NFL Comeback Player of the Year should be.
Sure, Ben Roethlisberger is having an amazing season leading the Steelers to a league-best 11-1 record after missing 14 games last year to elbow surgery.
But the former number one overall pick in 2005 had to face obstacles that transcend football.
It is no understatement to say Smith being alive with both legs, let alone playing in an NFL game, is a miracle.
After a successful surgery aligning his broken leg back into place, Smith’s doctors discovered an infection post surgery in his blood. The documentary showed that Smith was in a state of septic shock. He suffered a high fever that triggered doctors to revaluate him.
It was revealed that the blood in Smith’s leg was infected with bacteria that medical experts say is life-threatening if it spreads uncontrollably throughout the body.
The 36-year-old Smith and his family were faced with the tough decision to either amputate his right leg completely or perform another surgery to get rid of the bacterial infection.
They chose the latter, and the entire world saw the graphic and gruesome image of skin and tissue doctors had to remove from Smith’s leg, which almost scrapped down to the point all you can see is the bone.
Feel free to look up how gruesome those images were, but it is unnecessary.
It’s obvious to know the kind of hardships Smith and his family had to face.
Smith said in an interview on ESPN last February he is “lucky to be alive.”
After missing the entire 2019 season, Smith made Washington’s 53-man roster in 2020 and was listed third on the depth chart behind quarterbacks Dwayne Haskins Jr. and Kyle Allen.
Haskins started the season but struggled and was benched for Allen who got hurt after four games — paving the way for Smith to be under center.
Smith was named the starter in Week 10 but lost in a close game against the Lions 30-27. Since then, Washington has reeled off three straight wins.
If a television viewer walked away inspired from Smith’s documentary, imagine how his teammates view him.
Washington is on a three-game win streak and is tied for the top record in their division.
All with Smith under center.
Coincidence?
I don’t think so, thanks to the 2020 NFL Comeback Player of the Year.
