Cardinals QB coach Kitchens at home resting
In an offseason that has been filled with excitement for the Arizona Cardinals, the club got unquestionably its best news when quarterbacks coach Freddie Kitchens was released from Arizona Heart Hospital following emergency surgery last week to repair his aorta.
Darren Urban, who writes for the team’s Web site, reports Kitchens has returned home and probably will not be back to work on a limited basis until some point during training camp. It’s great news for Kitchens, who could have faced a deadly situation even when the team’s medical staff recommended he be taken to the hospital for testing after he fell ill at practice.
Kitchens released a statement through the team:
“There are so many people that I’ll be indebted to for the rest of my life and ‘thank you’ just doesn’t seem near enough. First to the Cardinals medical staff, (head athletic trainer) Tom Reed and his crew, (team physician) Dr. (Wayne) Kuhl. They recognized immediately that something was wrong, even when I wouldn’t admit it. They knew enough to send me right away to Chandler Regional (Medical Center) where the ER staff and attending physician jumped right in and knew how critical the situation was. They airlifted me to Arizona Heart Hospital and made the arrangements for Dr. (Andrew) Goldstein and the surgery team there to operate on me through the night.
“Looking back, I have no doubt – none whatsoever – that I wouldn’t be here today if it wasn’t for the those people. I’ve played or coached football my whole life so I can definitely appreciate teamwork and a smooth, efficient operation but the work those doctors, nurses and medical personnel do is just incredible. Again, I wouldn’t be alive without them. I’m overwhelmed by the prayers and kindness everyone has sent my way; from the Cardinals, throughout the NFL, in Arizona, Alabama and everywhere else. I realize how truly fortunate I am and the blessing I have been given.”
Hopefully, he’ll be full strength in the near future.
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Brad Biggs covers the Bears for the Chicago Tribune
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This story originally appeared on Nationalfootballpost.com
