1971-Bears vs. Lions (Chuck Hughes Death) (WJR Radio)

-In the history of the NFL, only once has a player died on the playing field during a game. It happened 50 years ago in 1971 when Chuck Hughes of the Detroit Lions collapsed and died of a heart attack during the final minutes of a game between the Lions and Bears at Tiger Stadium. "On October 24, Hughes took the field to play the last few moments of the Lions’ game against the Chicago Bears. He caught one pass for 32-yards, absorbing a big hit, and then returned to the huddle. A few plays later, after running a decoy route, the receiver collapsed. “Dick Butkus, Chicago linebacker, was the first to reach him and called for the Lions’ doctors from the sidelines,” the New York Times reported. Those efforts, however, were in vain. “The stunning development sent Lions’ players from the team dressing room in tears,” the report continued. “Some muttered, ‘He’s dead, he’s dead.’ At Henry Ford Hospital, where he was taken, Hughes was pronounced dead at 4:41 PM.” This is the Lions radio broadcast from WJR-Detroit, called by Van Patrick and Bob Reynolds. You can hear their stunned reaction to events as they realized the seriousness of it, though the report on Hughes' death would not take place until after the broadcast was over. The CBS telecast of the game does not exist and NFL Films has never shown any footage of the tragedy if any exists. The next night on Monday Night Football during the halftime highlights show, Howard Cosell somberly noted the events without showing any footage during the recap of the Bears-Lions game. This event is presented for the sake of archival documentation only.