Broncos outside linebacker Aaron Patrick filed a lawsuit Tuesday against several parties including the NFL, ESPN, Kroenke Sports and Entertainment and the Los Angeles Chargers. Patrick tore his left ACL in a sideline collision during Denver’s overtime loss to the Chargers on Oct. 18 at SoFi Stadium.
The suit, which Patrick’s attorney, William Berman, said was filed in California Superior Court on Tuesday morning, seeks undisclosed financial damages and claims the NFL’s replay liaison was improperly positioned when Patrick knocked Chargers punt returner DeAndre Carter out of bounds in overtime. Patrick collided with the person and stepped on a mat that was covering wires on the sideline that the suit says were to connect to the NFL’s on-field replay system.
When Patrick’s left foot came down on the mat, his leg turned awkwardly and he suffered a season-ending knee injury.
Berman in a news release said, “Player safety should be the foremost of importance to the NFL and its owners. The NFL is a multi-billion-dollar sports enterprise and business, and it needs to do everything possible to protect its players from non-contact game injuries. As for Patrick’s injuries, Sofi Stadium should have the state-of-the-art equipment to protect for player safety, and not use the type of $100 mats that you would expect to see in a restaurant kitchen.”
The suit claims all of the named defendants were negligent in their setup and operation of the stadium and sideline area.
