Kansas City Chiefs defensive lineman BJ Thompson is awake and responsive a day after suffering a seizure and cardiac arrest during a special teams meeting, NFL Network Insider Tom Pelissero reported Friday by Thompson’s agent.
Chiefs vice president of sports medicine and performance Rick Burkholder told reporters Friday that Thompson was heavily sedated at a local hospital Thursday and overnight after the incident and was on a ventilator during at night to help him breathe, but this has since been removed.
“He’s awake and alert,” Burkholder said. “He’s going in the right direction.”
Burkholder explained the frightening situation Thursday and noted that kicker Harrison Butker alerted medical staff to Thompson’s condition when the crisis began.
Burkholder said staff had to perform CPR on Thompson and used a defibrillator once after he went into cardiac arrest.
“Our players, our security staff, everyone involved, coaches and staff, have been phenomenal in their handling of the crisis,” Burkholder said.
Burkholder added that the league requires teams to practice their emergency action plans several times a year, and the Chiefs actually conducted a drill Monday.
“It’s a tough situation, I’ve been through a few in my career and it’s never fun,” Chiefs head coach Andy Reid told reporters Friday. “Thank God, if that were to happen, there would be no better place than here, where he had the support that knows what to do.”
The Chiefs canceled all team activities scheduled for Thursday following the incident.
Thompson, a 2023 fifth-round pick, appeared in one game during his rookie season.
The defending Super Bowl champions are currently in Phase 3 of their voluntary offseason program. Mandatory minicamp is scheduled to begin Tuesday.
