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Minnesota Vikings offensive tackle Korey Stringer passed away twenty years ago tomorrow. Korey Stringer wasn't out of shape. He was completely healthy. Stringer died suddenly after the Minnesota Vikings training camp.
What happened to Korey Stringer?
The 27-year-old offensive lineman died from complications from exertional heatstroke. Stringers' condition can be avoided and taken care of if treated by sports medicine, but it was ignored at the time.
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That day it was over 90 degrees. Stringer began to show signs of distress and was one of six Vikings players that showed signs. After practice, Korey Stringer was working on a drill when he slipped and fell onto his back. That fall caused teammate Matt Birk to call over the training staff.
The Vikings trainer assisted Stringer to an air-conditioned trailer. While in that trailer, the training staff didn't treat Stringer for heatstroke. Korey Stringer spent 50 minutes in the trailer and became unresponsive.
After Springer became unresponsive, he was transported by ambulance to a local hospital. When doctors checked Korey Stringer's internal temperature, it showed that his temp was 108.8 degrees. That caused multiple organs inside Stringer's body to shut down. The 27-year-old offensive tackle died 13 hours after being transported to the hospital.
How has Korey Stringer's death changed the NFL?
Korey Stringer's death has changed the NFL and has made the league more aware of his situation. Stringer vomited during the first practice, but he didn't fully recover before returning for the second practice.
The NFL changed the protocol, and it now states that if an NFL athlete vomits during practice, they're held out for the rest of that day. They've also added that athletes cannot suit up in full pads until the seventh day of training camp.
The NFL now uses Gatorade scales, which calculate everything from weight loss and how much a player needs to drink to rehydrate. Other teams utilize core temperature sensors that are ingested for the duration of the practice. That sensor sends the core temperature of the player to the medical staff.
Every NFL team must now report to the NFL with an emergency action plan. The NFL must approve that plan. Sadly, a player had to die before the NFL stepped up and created these rules to help keep the athletes safe. Korey Stringer will be remembered forever because of the changes he made on and off the field.
