Jets’ Byrd Has Broken Vertebra

Thursday, Dennis Byrd was talking about Mike Utley.

It was Thanksgiving Day, and Byrd had returned home from practice. He turned on the Detroit Lion-Houston Oiler game to watch Utley, whom he had befriended at a college all-star game in 1989. As he watched Utley in his first Silverdome appearance since he was paralyzed, Byrd told a friend how much he admired Utley’s courage and spirit.

“That guy has some heart,” said Byrd, who described it as “very emotional” to see his friend, in a wheelchair, at the game.

Today, Byrd faces the possibility of the same fate.

Byrd, one of the friendliest and most popular players on the Jets, left Giants Stadium yesterday with paralysis in his lower body. The 6-foot-5, 266-pound defensive end suffered a broken vertebra, the result of a head-on collision with nose tackle Scott Mersereau during the third quarter of the Jets’ 23-7 loss to the Kansas City Chiefs.

The 26-year-old Byrd was taken to Lenox Hill Hospital, where he was examined by a team of spine specialists. As of Sunday night, he was in stable condition but still had no use of his legs and partial use of his arms. Doctors were discussing the possibility of surgery.

“In layman’s terms, (he has) a broken neck,” Jet spokesman Frank Ramos said.

The sight of Byrd lying motionless on the Kansas City 18-yard line shook the Jets. Erik McMillan was so upset that he had to come out of the game. Rookie Mario Johnson cried. Several players offered words of encouragement to Byrd, who was conscious the entire time.

According to players, Byrd--on his back for seven minutes--asked the doctors, “Am I going to be paralyzed? I can’t move my legs!”

Afterward, trainer Bob Reese briefed the team, providing the latest details. A few players wept in front of their lockers. Marvin Washington, Byrd’s best friend, walked aimlessly around the locker room. No one talked about the game. They talked about praying for Byrd, one of the emotional leaders of the Jets’ defense.

“Everybody is real upset about it,” linemate Paul Frase said at the hospital Sunday night. “We’re just praying for him. He’s a Christian--he knows what God can do in this situation.”

The injury occurred on the second play of the third quarter. It was a pass play. Byrd looped to his left, Mersereau to his right, both with one thing on their mind: Get the quarterback. As they closed in on the target, Dave Krieg stepped up. Byrd and Mersereau couldn’t stop.

Mersereau took Byrd’s helmet in his sternum, and he, too, lay motionless, gasping for air. He had the wind knocked out of him, and got up after a couple of minutes. Byrd remained on his back, moving only his left arm, before being immobilized and taken off the field on a spineboard. He was transported to the hospital, accompanied by his wife, Angela.

“On the field, he was complaining that he couldn’t move his legs,” Reese said. “We asked him what happened. He said he hit his head, and couldn’t exactly remember how.”

Defensive coordinator Pete Carroll remembered Byrd saying, “You guys get out there and play.”

The mood in the locker room ranged from sadness to shock. “It’s like time stands still,” said Ken O’Brien, recalling how he felt when it happened. “You say it can’t happen, but it happens.”

Three days ago, Jet wide receiver Al Toon had to retire at 29 because of a series of concussions.

“It’s beginning to sadden a guy,” quarterback Browning Nagle said. “You wonder what’s going to happen next.”

Eight nights ago, Byrd returned home from a loss in New England in a sour mood--until he walked in the house and was greeted by his 2-year-old daughter, Ashtin.

“There’s more to life than football,” he had said.

Newsday writer Dale Fuchs and the Associated Press contributed to this story.