Falcons rookie linebacker Kendal Daniels was taken off the field on a stretcher Sunday against the Bears and was ruled out. ESPN reported that the Falcons said he is alert and has movement in all his extremities after injuring his neck on a tackle attempt. ESPN also reported that he was hospitalized.
Per NFL Trade Rumors, the injury came when Daniels tried to tackle Bears tight end Colston Loveland. That outlet said he left with his jersey and pads cut off. It also said many observers expected him to go straight to the hospital rather than the locker room. Yahoo Sports' Chris Cwik described the play as a helmet-to-knee tackle. That is the only description of the mechanism we have, and the other outlets don't repeat it. Cwik also noted that Daniels had movement in one of his hands as he left the field. The Falcons' statement, as ESPN relayed it, speaks of all extremities. The two accounts differ in scope, and the Falcons' account is the more recent of the two.
Reddit's r/nfl, citing a report from Cronin, said the entire Atlanta bench emptied onto the field while trainers worked to get Daniels onto the cart. It said Bears players asked fans chanting "Green Bay sucks" to stop. Yahoo called it an emotional scene. None of the reporting we have gives a diagnosis, and none offers a timeline.
Daniels had been a regular part of the defense. Through five games he had 22 tackles, 16 of them solo, plus one sack. Our box score for the game shows he had seven tackles, six solo, and one tackle for loss before he left. The game was still live when we checked, with Chicago ahead 31-23 and 4:19 left in the fourth quarter at Mercedes-Benz Stadium.
Atlanta is 2-3 and second in the NFC South. It has lost its last game, 30-23 to Baltimore on Oct. 11, after wins at New Orleans and at Green Bay. Chicago is 3-2 and has lost its last game as well, 31-7 at Green Bay last week.
The Falcons host San Francisco next Sunday, Oct. 25. Whether Daniels is available is not something any outlet has addressed, and the first priority is the hospital evaluation. The Bears play New England on Thursday, Oct. 22.
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