Lewan: 'Never A Hiccup' in Recovery from Concussion

NASHVILLE – Taylor Lewan met his recovery from a concussion head on.

“I wasn’t just sitting in a dark room the whole time,” the Tennessee Titans left tackle said Friday. “I reached out to a bunch of people that I trust, and I tried a bunch of things – legal things – that I really thought was going to help me.

“And you know what? Three or four days in, I was really feeling a lot better consistently. I’m just really happy I had the access to go do those things.”

The injury, sustained the Titans’ victory over the Buffalo Bills on Oct. 18, caused him to miss last Sunday’s game against the Kansas City Chiefs. However, he returned to practice this week and was a full participant each of the last three days.

More important to the three-time Pro Bowler was the concern the injury caused for his family, friends and all of those who watched the game that night. The 6-foot-7, 309-pound Lewan said he was knocked out cold and only regained consciousness after he had been strapped to a stretcher, his facemask had been removed and he was being taken from the field.

“I had the worst anxiety after scaring all the people in the stadium and all the people at home and friends,” he said. “Obviously, getting knocked out is never a good thing. … I’m just super lucky it was just what it was. It was a really surreal experience. Definitely not one I enjoyed.”

It was the second concussion Lewan has sustained in his NFL career, which began when Tennessee selected him 11th overall in 2014. He got knocked out midway through the 2018 opener at Miami. That one, likewise, caused him to sit out the next contest, but he played every game after that for the remainder of the season.

This one did not keep him out of action any longer, and in the long run – even as serious as it was – it provided some comic relief in the offensive line meeting room.

“You see that happen to people and you really hope that it never happens to you,” Lewan said. “The reason they put me on the stretcher is – apparently – they couldn’t wake me up. [Center] Ben [Jones] jokes that I was snoring on the field, and the trainers say that I was legitimately snoring. I just knocked myself out.”

Lewan acknowledged that concussions are a hot-button issue in the NFL as they have been for several years. He praised the Titans’ coaches and medical staff for the seriousness with which they approached the situation from start to finish, which came Thursday when he officially cleared the league’s concussion protocols.

He will be available Sunday when Tennessee (5-2) faces Indianapolis (3-4) in a game that will dramatically shape the race for first place in the AFC South throughout the remainder of the season.

“If I wasn’t feeling like myself, I would not be playing in this game,” Lewan said. “… Every step I took, there was never a hiccup.”

There were just a few lumps in the throat to start.

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