Cleveland Browns' Marcus Benard says fainting was because of stress over baby
Published: Friday, November 19, 2010, 6:48 AM Updated: Friday, November 19, 2010, 8:25 AM
Tony Grossi, The Plain Dealer Tony Grossi, The Plain Dealer
BEREA, Ohio — Browns linebacker Marcus Benard never saw a group of scribes with such concern on their faces.
"Sorry to scare everybody like that," he said.
The topic was Benard's fainting spell a week ago in the Browns' locker room before a practice session. Paramedics took him to a local hospital and after eight hours of tests and observation, he was released.
Benard played in the overtime loss to the New York Jets, then darted away after the game without speaking to reporters. He was not seen Monday and missed practice Wednesday.
He has been through a tough period, but the good news is he's OK, and so is an addition to his family who arrived prematurely.
"It was stress-related," Benard said of the fainting spell. "Personally, I had a lot going on. My body got weak. I just have to take care of my body better."
Bottom line: Football players are people, too.
The ordeal began a couple of weeks ago when trouble began in the mother's pregnancy. She was hospitalized and it became clear the baby would come early. How early, Benard wouldn't say.
But the stress of the situation caused him to not eat right, not hydrate and not sleep.
"It was definitely tough," Benard said of dealing with the situation. "I think I did a pretty good job up until that point. My body told my mind, 'You know what, let me take a break.' "
Benard was assured the fainting spell was about dehydration after tests on his heart and brain showed no problems. So he was cleared to play Sunday, and did what he does better than anybody on the Browns' defense -- sack the quarterback.
"I was a little out of it after [the fainting spell], but I played hard. I was focused," he said.
Benard's sack of Mark Sanchez improved his team-leading total to 5.5 and gave him nine in the 12 games since he burst out of obscurity in the win over Pittsburgh on Dec. 10.
He said he rushed out of the locker room after the game because doctors were preparing his girlfriend for a delivery. He spent the night in the hospital. The baby boy arrived Monday morning at 9:15.
"Everything's all right," Benard said. "He's healthy. He's big. He kind of fought the doctors when he came out. He's got some good hands on him.
"He did [give us a scare]. But he's a fighter and he's doing real well now. He seems to have a mind of his own. Now that he's out, he's moving ahead of that curve. He's not really in trouble anymore."
Benard, who has two other sons, named the new one Ashai Sharoz.
"It means 'a special gift,' " he said.
With the worst of the ordeal behind him, Benard is eager to delve into his assignment Sunday in Jacksonville. With linebacker Scott Fujita out with a sprained knee, Benard may receive more playing time in the funky "amoeba" defensive alignments designed by coordinator Rob Ryan.
The Jaguars (5-4) tend to win or lose based on the play of quarterback David Garrard. He has thrown 14 touchdowns and one interception in the team's five wins, one TD and six INTs in the four losses. Garrard is a squatty 6-1 and 236 pounds who can be hard to bring down.
"We have to just keep him in the pocket," Benard said. "He's a good quarterback, both in the pocket and outside. If we keep him in, we limit the things he can do."
It can be a tough assignment, sure. But nothing like he has just been through.
"Life is hard," Benard said. "If life was easy, everybody would be rich and smiling all the time. Definitely tough. But that comes with having a family and playing this game.
"I'm here to play football. As much as I had going on, this is my job and I have a team."
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