Bill Belichick provides promising update on Isaiah Bolden after CB’s horrific injury - “He’s in good spirits”

Isaiah Bolden suffered a frightening injury during the New England Patriots' recent 2023 NFL preseason game against the Green Bay Packers. He collided with a teammate on what appeared to be a routine play. In a scary scene, he needed to be immobilized and stretchered off the field in a cart by the medical staff.

The rookie cornerback was quickly brought to the hospital to be evaluated, as everyone patiently waited to hopefully receive a positive update. According to head coach Bill Belichick, Isaiah Bolden entered the hospital Saturday night and received medical clearance to be released in time for their flight home Monday morning.

Belichick gave a crucial update via NESN:

“He flew back with us ... I talked to Isaiah, and he’s in good spirits. Recovering, obviously. So we’ll just take it day to day, but he certainly seems a lot better today than it looked like Saturday night, so that’s a good thing. It’s good for him to fly back with the team and everyone see him. He’s got a lot of support here.”

Bolden's teammates, as well as many others around the NFL, can all exhale a sigh of relief that he avoided the worst-case scenarios with such an alarming initial injury. While Bill Belichick declined to get into details about the exact nature of the injury, the rookie allegedly suffered a concussion and could possibly be dealing with other complications.

When can Isaiah Bolden return to the Patriots?

Isaiah Bolden

As long as Bolden avoided any major complications, he will officially be allowed to return to the New England Patriots as soon as he clears the concussion protocols. They will be administered by a third-party medical staff, completely separate from the Patriots' team doctors and unassociated with the NFL.

This process is the result of an effort from the NFLPA and NFL front office to take concussions as seriously as possible and avoid neglecting the severity of the situation. Hiring an outside opinion has been agreed upon to help give a neutral opinon on the medical situation, with theoretically zero influence from a footballing perspective.

The Patriots selected Isaiah Bolden in the seventh round of the 2023 NFL Draft, and he has been competing in both training camp and the preseason to earn a role in their defensive scheme. They also selected Christian Gonzalez in the first round, upgrading their cornerbacks.