New Orleans Saints linebacker Demario Davis opened up about a scary incident involving his 4-year-old daughter a few days before he had to go out and play against the Tennessee Titans.
Davis said his daughter suffered her third epileptic seizure. He said she seized for 30 minutes and that his wife Tamela, who rode with the child in an ambulance, told him that their daughter stopped breathing twice on the way to the hospital. Davis played with a heavy heart in Sunday’s 16-15 win, racking up 10 tackles in the game – one of which was for a loss.
Instead of immediately talking about his game, Davis started his postgame media availability in an “untraditional” way – reading a passage from Revelations 3:20. “Behold, I stand at the door, and knock: if any man hear my voice, and open the door, I will come in to him, and will sup with him, and he with me.”
New Orleans Saints linebacker Demario Davis, #56, warms up before an NFL football game against the Tennessee Titans in New Orleans, Sunday, Sept. 10, 2023. (AP Photo/Gerald Herbert)
Davis then talked about a “knock” he heard this week and talked about the harrowing moments with his daughter. He said he was very worried she would suffer some kind of developmental issue.
“We prayed and we prayed and she had medicine, and my wife and I had to stay overnight at the hospital,” Davis said. “And in the middle of the night, probably about 3 o’clock, I heard a knock. And the knock was my daughter. I said, ‘God, let this be just be an attack from the enemy that’s just trying to be a distraction, and let him have overplayed his hand and my daughter come back stronger than before.’”
Davis said his daughter talked in the middle of the night and “clearer than she was talking before.”
He added that usually anyone who suffers from epilepsy usually needs a few days to get back to somewhat normal over the next few days. Davis said that was not the case for his daughter.
“We heard her talk and we let her talk for about 20 minutes and we said, ‘Baby, it’s night time, let’s go back to sleep.’ I just prayed, I started saying, ‘Praise God, Praise God,’” he said. “The next morning when she got up, my daughter was so sharp. She was able to talk to me and her mom. No stuttering, all her words clear. And if any of you were able to have a conversation with my daughter, you wouldn’t know anything had ever happened.”
Davis said he and his wife threw a party for their 7-year-old daughter, and the 4-year-old was able to come home as “if nothing was happening.” Davis described the seizure as the “worst seizure that she ever had…”
Demario Davis, #56 of the New Orleans Saints, and Marcus Maye, #6 of the New Orleans Saints, celebrate after Maye’s interception during the third quarter against the Tennessee Titans at Caesars Superdome on Sept. 10, 2023 in New Orleans. (Jonathan Bachman/Getty Images)
SUPER BOWL CHAMPION COACH CORRECTS ‘SPORTSCENTER’ OVER COCO GAUFF CLIP: ‘SHE WAS PRAYING’
Davis continued to talk about his faith.
“But when I tell you I got a chance to hear a knock from God,” Davis said. “And what I want to share is, we get to play this game and it’s great. And it’s so many amazing things that can happen in that game. And everybody wants to hear about them. But when we leave this game we go back to being regular people. And regular people are living life, and people are waiting for a knock. And the Word says who Jesus is, He’s knocking at the door. All you’ve got to do is get up.
“And so on the way, I’m nervous, but I’m praying, and I’m trusting, and I’m believing. And I’m not asking for my daughter to make it through, I’m asking that she’s better than before. And God gave me just what I asked for, plus some. I was blown away. And at that point, I knew the game was going to take care of itself. My knock had already been answered, and I just want people to know if you’ve got stuff going on in your life, lay it before the Lord. Lay it before the Lord and trust. And be expecting of a knock. Because the word says what you have to do is, you have to get up and open the door. And your blessing is going to be there.”
New Orleans Saints linebacker Demario Davis (56) looks on during minicamp at the Ochsner Sports Performance Center in New Orleans June 13, 2023. (Stephen Lew-USA TODAY Sports)
Davis is an NFL veteran who has been in the league since 2012. He earned his first Pro Bowl nod last season after recording 109 tackles and an interception to go along with a career-high 6.5 sacks.
The Saints play the Carolina Panthers next week.
