Ricardo Lockette’s life changed forever in 2015 when the Seahawks receiver suffered a serious neck injury while on a punt return. In an instant his career was over, and Lockette was unsure if he’d even survive. This week, he spoke to first responders in Washington, and he didn’t know the paramedics who saved him that day were in the audience.
Ricardo Lockette had an emotional reunion with the paramedics who saved his life
James Dator has been covering a wide range of sports for SB Nation for over a decade, with a special focus on the NFL.
Lockette has become a motivational speaker since retiring from the NFL, and his speech to the responders in Spokane was from the heart:
“The reason I’m here. The reason I have the opportunity to hug my mom now. The reason that I got an opportunity to go to my daughter’s graduation from elementary school yesterday is because of you guys. It’s more like I’m talking to my angels. It’s more like I’m talking to people that saved my life.”
Little did he know that two of the men in the crowd were those who were on the field to assist him on that fateful day in 2015. When Lockette met deputy chief Gerald Randall and engineer paramedic John Robinson, he couldn’t hold back his tears:
