Jamal’s 2023 journey started in December of 2021 when he had to have a second shoulder repair, missing the remainder of the 2021 season. After a long off-season of rehab, he was poised for a successful 2022 year. During the first game of the 2022 season, Jamal ruptured his left quad tendon, a devastating injury for a professional football player.
After a repair on September 20th, 2022, Jamal started the long process of recovery. The mental and physical rigors of recovering from this type of injury are extremely arduous. At every phase there are opportunities to quit or surrender to internal and external challenges. Despite this, Jamal returned to Seattle ready to work with the goal of playing again. This goal was realized, but short lived during the team’s 4th game of the season versus the New York Giants, where he suffered another injury in the 1st quarter that kept him out of the remainder of that game. Another challenge. Another obstacle. Another delay.
Jamal was able to get back on track after the team’s BYE week versus Cincinnati. Because of his journey recovering from his knee injury, his teammates felt fit to unanimously vote for him as co-winner for the 2023 Ed Block Courage Award in Seattle.
Trials and tribulations come our way and we often need to lean on others to help us through them. This is what Jamal and Jordyn did. They rehabbed together nearly every day. Each one motivating the other. Both of them overcoming the challenges of demotivation, physical and mental pain, and the uncertainty of the future. Without each other, there is no doubt the journeys that they were on would have been infinitely more difficult. It for these reasons that they were voted co-winners of the 2023 Ed Block Courage Award.