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Minnesota Vikings wide receiver K.J. Osborn is being hailed a hero after helping save a man’s life from a burning car on Sunday night.
“Last night myself and these 3 absolute heroes helped save a man’s life by rescuing him from a vehicle up in flames after a bad crash,” Osborn wrote on Twitter. “A situation I’d never imagine being a part of in a million years.”
Osborn, 25, was on his way home in an Uber after a workout in Austin, Texas, when he was alerted by his driver that a car had crashed under a bridge and burst into flames, he said on The Adam Schefter Podcast.
“My Uber driver just starts going crazy. He’s like, ‘Oh my gosh! Oh my gosh!’ I look up, and I’m wondering what’s all the fuss about,” Osborn said. “He’s like, ‘This guy crashed,’ and I look to my right and there’s a car, if you were to picture it, under a bridge’s pillars. His car is head-on. He hit the pillar and his car is in flames.”
Osborn, along with his Uber driver and two other bystanders — who he called “heroes” — pulled over to evaluate the situation and call for help.
His Uber driver initially wanted to call 911, but the wide receiver noticed how serious the situation was and knew they needed to take immediate action.
“I’m like, ‘No, we got to go save this guy,” Osborn said.
The Michigan native said his driver, in total disregard for his own safety, rushed over to the burning vehicle, prompting Osborn to follow in step to assist with the two other bystanders.
The Uber driver was able to open the door, and all four of the heroes began talking with the man. When it became apparent that he could not exit the car on his own, they banded together to pull the man out to safety.
“[The car’s] in flames. He’s got blood on him. He’s bleeding. He’s kinda, you know, obviously out of it,” Osborn told Schefter.
Once the man was pulled out of the car by Osborn and the good Samaritans, he was able to carry the injured man about “10, 15 yards” away from the burning car as he bled all over his shirt.
At that point, emergency personnel arrived on scene and were able to put out the fire and transport the injured man to a hospital via ambulance.
“The police officers got all our info and everything, and they came back and told us, ‘You saved that man’s life.’”
Osborn said he plans on visiting the man he saved in the hospital.
The unidentified victim sustained minor injuries, but Osborn is just happy that he is alive, calling it “the greatest blessing.”
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The Uber driver and the two other heroes have not been identified.
The NFL wideout, who is currently studying for his master’s degree in criminal justice at the University of Miami — with aspirations of joining the FBI or Secret Service when he hangs up his cleats — said he’s still trying to process the events of Sunday night.
“I didn’t think it would affect me too much. I thought I would just be able to go to sleep and be fine, but I couldn’t sleep.”
Osborn, who was selected by the Vikings in the fifth round of the 2020 NFL Draft, expressed great joy that he and the others were driving by that night to save the man, believing the man would have perished if they weren’t there.
“They always say ‘wrong place, wrong time,’ but you know I was at the exact place at the right time,” he said.
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