Former Jacksonville Jaguar was paralyzed from shooting last month from the waist down and had to have a leg amputated

SCOTT JACOBS

It’s a sad day in the NFL and for the Jacksonville Jaguars. Today Richard Collier’s NFL career was put to bed, and the normal life he lived not so long ago, a distant memory.

From ESPN.com

Dr. Andy Kerwin, a surgeon for the University of Florida at Shands Jacksonville hospital, said Collier, who had 14 bullet wounds, is now in good condition after being previously listed in critical condition.

Kerwin said Collier had bullet wounds to the back, left groin, left legs and right buttock. In addition, a bullet severed his spinal cord, paralyzing him from the waist down. The amputation was the result of damage to his left leg and groin, which had blood clots.

The 26-year-old Collier had five bullets removed from his urinary bladder and suffered bouts of pneumonia, infections and renal failure.

The player will undergo physical therapy to learn to get from his bed to a wheelchair. He will never walk again, the doctor said.

Collier was on a ventilator for about three weeks and has no memory of the shooting, Kerwin said.

“His overall condition has improved greatly,” Kerwin said. “We expect him to be discharged soon.”

Are thoughts and prayers go out to Collier’s family and friends.  It’s the third shooting in the last two years of an NFL player.

We’d like to note that 930thefox.com brought this story to our attention.

http://www.930thefox.com/pages/blasts.html

http://sports.espn.go.com/nfl/news/story?id=3616696

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