Tank Dell dealt with the raw fear and the pain of being a victim of a gunshot wound in a mass Florida shooting, caught in the crossfire between two combatants as an innocent bystander at a private party.
A bullet pierced his leg, going through the back and out of the front with no structural or permanent damage, a flesh wound that could have been much more serious.
While the initial shock of this incident was subsiding, the Texans’ dynamic wide receiver and former University of Houston star was concerned about how this would impact his football career. In the hospital before being released to return to Texas,
“When it first happened, when I was in the hospital, that’s the only thing I was asking: ‘Am I going to be all right to play football?’” said Dell, who was one of 10 victims that suffered non-life-threatening injuries during the shooting in Sanford, Fla with a teenager arrested for attempted murder and other charges. “That was my main thing: ‘Will I be okay to run and play football like I’ve been doing?’ Once they told me like it was just like a ‘through and through’, once they told me that, ‘you will be good,’ I was good. I was ready to go.”
A scary situation behind him, Dell is now focused on doing what he loves: accelerating into routes with his unique set of moves and making impactful plays while catching passes from his friend, Texans Pro Bowl quarterback C.J. Stroud.
On the heels of an impressive rookie year where Dell established himself as one of the most exciting young wide receivers in the game, after overcoming a broken fibula that cut that season short, the Daytona Beach, Fla. native, had already made a full, speedy recovery from that injury. Once his leg healed from the bullet wound, it wasn’t long before Dell was back at it with his private coach, Delfonte Diamond.
Now that the ordeal is behind him, Dell has gained a perspective from his painful brush with danger after a fight he had no involvement in got out of control and led to gunfire.
“I don’t want to keep reliving the experience,” Dell said. “It definitely changed my perspective of things. Hanging around, like, just not even hanging around, but being around the right group of guys and being in the right situations. But just wrong place, wrong time. So, just got to live with it. I’m blessed. God blessed me to get out of that situation healthy. I was only down for like a week, but I was just working out. But after that, I got right back to work, and I’m feeling good.
“It’s definitely scary, not only for myself but for my family, because I don’t want to put myself in that type of position, and especially like my family, I’ve got a little brother, my mom, I know how they were feeling at that time. It’s just a blessing that I’m safe, but it’s a traumatic experience.”
Dell displays zero signs of what happened on the practice field. He’s his usual explosive self, creating separation in the open field and running away from defensive backs. His hands, his play strength and his moves are all on point.
Dell leans on his family and friends, and deep faith, attending church and praying regularly. His grandmother and other family members keep checking on him to make sure he’s fine.
“I got God on my side, keep him first in everything I do,” Dell said. “So, I feel good. I’ve got the right group of guys around me, keeping my head up, my mom, my pops, people back home, my grandmother, everybody praying for me and just calling me checking in every day now.”
“It’s a blessing just to be out there just running around. I don’t even have to get the ball, just running around and just running routes and just feeling love from my team makes it feels great. Since I’ve been hurt, they’ve been showing tremendous love.”
Dell was on track for 73 catches, 1,096 yards and 11 touchdowns when he got hurt. Dell broke former Pro Bowl tight end Owen Daniels’ rookie franchise record for touchdown catches.
Four of the Texans’ catches of at least 20 yards or more came on Dell touchdown receptions. That’s the third-highest mark in the league for any receiver with touchdowns of at least 20 yards, at the time of his injury.
When Stroud first learned that Dell had been shot with the information relayed by a Texans public relations staffer, he was shocked. One of his closest friends, the NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year couldn’t wait to see him. Now that they’re back on the field together, they’ve renewed their timing and chemistry.
To see Dell back out there so quickly leaves Stroud in awe.
“It was amazing,” Stroud said. “It’s just a testament to him and one, the God we serve and two, just the work that he’s put in. He came back before it was even scheduled he could get cleared, and then on top of that, just coming back after that freak accident. I think we serve a God that’s merciful and that’s purposeful, and he knows that and he stepped into it. And me and him, we have those conversations about our faith. This football stuff, it seems like it’s everything, but it’s not. We’re people and we go through a lot off the field people don’t know.
Photo: Logan Riely / Getty Images Sport / Getty Images
“As his brother, I have to be there for him just like he is there for me when I go through what I go through. I’m just proud of him, man. The word ‘proud’ probably isn’t even enough to state the feelings that I have for that guy. He’s one of my best friends that I’ve gotten to know over the years in this world of football. Just got a lot of love for that guy. I’m very excited for him. He’s been snapping at practice and doing really well, and to knock off the rust that quick shows how much work he’s put in.”
Dell finished last season with 47 receptions and 709 yards and piled up 33 first downs.
Now, he’s part of a deep and talented receiving corps headlined by him, Pro Bowl wide receiver Stefon Diggs and Nico Collins, the Texans’ $75 million man. It’s arguably the top trio of receivers in the NFL.
“Yeah, I’m happy for Tank to get back out there,” Texans coach DeMeco Ryans said. “Obviously, we know he went through a very tragic situation. We’re just happy that he’s here, happy that he’s back out doing what he loves doing, and that’s playing football. So, it’s fun to see him running around and being the same player he’s been before, just making plays and being a dynamic player for us. So, everyone is excited to see Tank back.”
Dell would like to catch 100 passes this season and have over 1,300 receiving yards. With Stroud delivering the football to him, anything is possible.
“I’ve got some big goals, and I’m looking forward to stepping in that light and achieving them,” said Dell, who credited his trainer, Justin Allen, for his conditioning. “Man, words can’t explain. C.J. been with me since the offseason started. We been with each other since in L.A., here in Houston, everywhere, so that’s been great. That brotherhood not going to go nowhere.
“Just being around the whole team has been good. We got new faces and them guys cool. We all in there having fun, building our chemistry in the locker room and then taking it onto the field. It’s just been good. Everybody having fun. You see everybody smiling. You know, we got something special brewing here in the organization, and we ready to get to work.”
Dell and Diamond, posted videos of him running routes and performing drills at the University of Houston indoor training facility before he returned to practice.
“Oh man, Tank looked good,” Diamond said. “It’s the real deal. He ain’t lost a step. Even though that stuff happened, No. 3 is ready to go.”
Diamond said that Dell is his usual exuberant, hard-working self.
“Oh yeah, his mental is good,” Diamond said. “Big smile. He gave me a hug. He told me he loved me. He said, ‘It’s time to work.’ His spirits are in a good place.”
The resiliency that Dell has shown is remarkable, even to Diamond.
“Tough ain’t the word,” Diamond said. “If there’s a word past tough, that’s Tank. He responds to everything. That’s a real good trait.
“He is in love with the game. He’s always telling me, ‘I don’t care what’s thrown my way, I’m always going to respond and come back even harder.’ That’s his motto.”
Aaron Wilson is a contributor to Sports Talk 790.