Seahawks Super Bowl hero Derick Hall opens up about how 'God' saved him from near-certain death

Seattle Seahawks linebacker Derick Hall made his people connected NFL past erstwhile helium came up with a tone-setting portion sack successful the Super Bowl against the New England Patriots this February.

There's a debased percent accidental that immoderate shot subordinate volition get a infinitesimal similar that successful his career. But Hall had to bushed overmuch greater odds. Hall had a 1% accidental of endurance erstwhile helium was calved 4 months premature astatine conscionable 23 weeks gestation, calved without a heartbeat and suffering from a encephalon bleed.

"I wasn’t born… breathing," helium told Fox News Digital. "I was calved dead.

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Derick Hall of the Seattle Seahawks portion sacks Drake Maye of the New England Patriots during the 3rd 4th of the NFL Super Bowl LX astatine Levi's Stadium successful Santa Clara, Calif., connected Feb. 8, 2026. (Brooke Sutton/Getty Images)

For his mother, Stacy Gooden-Crandle, those archetypal days of her son's beingness were filled with uncertainty and fear.

"Emotional, a batch of uncertainty, scared," she said of her emotions successful the days that followed her son's premature birth. "But… those weren’t the feelings that I was feeling during Derrick’s birth. I conscionable trusted that God would enactment everything out."

That content became the halfway of however the household made consciousness of everything that followed.

"It is astir apt the astir important happening that we share," Gooden-Crandle said of their religion.

"We are radical of religion and person been for astir of my lifetime. I joined religion erstwhile I was 16 years old, and I’ve conscionable grown up arsenic a pistillate of faith. I’ve raised my children successful the religion and instilled religion successful them and conscionable allowed them to flourish successful their religion successful their locomotion with Christ."

For Hall, increasing up wrong that situation gave meaning to struggles helium didn’t yet understand.

"It was huge. It was astonishing due to the fact that I ne'er truly understood wherefore maine oregon wherefore my household had to spell done what I was going through," Hall said said.

Derick Hall of the Seattle Seahawks watches from the sideline during the nationalist anthem earlier an NFL crippled against the Atlanta Falcons astatine Mercedes-Benz Stadium successful Atlanta, Ga., connected Dec. 7, 2025. (Perry Knotts/Getty Images)

"My pastor ever told me, you weren’t dying for this, you are blessed to beryllium successful this presumption and God has thing greater for you, and I deliberation that helped maine beryllium astatine easiness with the concern and the things that maine and my household were enduring during the time.

"I ever talk to my religion due to the fact that evidently I’m a occurrence child, and I don’t accidental I’m doing good, I accidental I’m blessed, I can’t complain, I’m supra crushed and I’m blessed... You can’t archer maine that a kid with a 1 percent accidental to unrecorded and not expected to beryllium walking, not expected to beryllium talking, not adjacent expected to beryllium alive, ends up being a Super Bowl champion 1 time without the Lord being successful their lives."

Even aft surviving infancy, the challenges didn’t disappear, and his puerility looked precise antithetic from different kids.

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"My hardest clip play was from astir the property of 4 oregon 5 to astir the property of 12 oregon 13," Hall said. "I could spell retired and play, but it was lone for astir 5 minutes astatine a clip and I would person to spell beryllium down for an hr conscionable to let my assemblage and my lungs to drawback backmost up, and to this time my lungs are inactive underdeveloped, they ever volition be, they’ll ever beryllium 3 years behind."

Those limits extended into astir each portion of his life, including the seasons erstwhile different kids were extracurricular playing freely.

But done it all, Hall discovered football, and his information wasn't going to support him from the crippled that would specify his life.

Derick Hall of the Seattle Seahawks holds the Vince Lombardi trophy connected signifier with his teammates aft winning Super Bowl LX against the New England Patriots astatine Levi's Stadium successful Santa Clara, Calif., connected Feb. 8, 2026. (Brooke Sutton/Getty Images)

"I started playing shot astatine the property of 4 due to the fact that I was trying to make my assemblage and get to the constituent wherever I was capable to bash things, and I fell successful emotion with it due to the fact that it was the archetypal happening that I was capable to bash to marque maine consciousness similar a mean kid," helium said.

For his mom, that infinitesimal came with a hard determination astir her son's wellbeing.

"It was hard to marque the determination to let him to play, truthful I allowed him to play emblem shot successful the beginning, but making that leap to let him to play tackle shot erstwhile we were inactive seeing a neurologist each six months for a encephalon bleed, it was a hard decision," she said.

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"I made definite each the coaches had asthma pumps and rescue inhalers, and I gave 1 to the coaches, the trainers, I kept one, to marque definite if idiosyncratic needed to get to him they had what helium needed... And arsenic helium progressed, I was getting much and much comfortable."

The religion successful letting him play shot paid disconnected erstwhile Hall received his archetypal assemblage assistance connection erstwhile helium was conscionable successful the eighth grade, his ma said.

Hall went connected to beryllium a standout linebacker astatine Gulfport High School successful Mississippi, rising from a touted four-star imaginable to a ascendant All-SEC borderline rusher astatine Auburn University.

But adjacent aft coming each that mode from his premature birth, helium inactive had a infinitesimal wherever helium feared for his beingness successful college.

"I had a scare successful assemblage wherever I went to signifier that greeting and I wasn’t feeling that well, and the adjacent time I got up to spell usage the restroom and I couldn’t instrumentality similar 2 steps without gasping for air," Hall said. "We got to the infirmary and the doc said, we’re gladsome you brought him due to the fact that if you would person waited different hr helium astir apt would person been successful precise atrocious shape."

It was a turning constituent successful however helium approached his ain limits. But helium didn't shy distant from his passionateness arsenic a shot player, and remained committed to his faith.

Hall finished his vocation astatine Auburn with 147 tackles, 19.5 sacks and 29.5 tackles for nonaccomplishment successful 40 games. A highly touted recruit, Hall developed into a ascendant SEC starter, earning first-team All-SEC honors successful 2022 arsenic a squad captain, known for his elite power, speed, and precocious motor.

It earned him a accidental to instrumentality his bonzer communicative to the NFL arsenic helium went connected to beryllium the 37th prime successful the 2023 NFL Draft.

But the 2025 didn’t unfold the mode Derrick Hall expected, astatine slightest successful presumption of his idiosyncratic stats astatine first. For overmuch of the year, the numbers didn’t lucifer the effort. He was getting pressure, getting hits, doing the enactment that doesn’t ever amusement up successful headlines, but the sacks weren’t coming.

"I was dependable getting hits… I’m getting pressures," Hall said. "But I can’t get the sack… I’m like, Lord, immoderate you got planned, fto it uncover itself."

Statistically, that vexation was real. Hall finished the regular play with conscionable 2 sacks crossed 14 games, contributing much arsenic a rotational borderline beingness than a header walk rusher. But wrong Seattle’s defence — a portion built connected balance, extent and accordant unit — his relation inactive mattered. The Seahawks leaned connected a corporate walk unreserved alternatively than 1 ascendant star, finishing the play arsenic 1 of the league’s much effectual antiaircraft fronts.

And then, astir each astatine once, everything changed.

On the biggest signifier successful football, successful Super Bowl LX against the Patriots, Hall delivered the benignant of show that reshapes a career. He recorded 2 sacks and a forced fumble, including a portion sack that helped interruption the crippled unfastened and acceptable the code for Seattle’s 29–13 win. That azygous play — driving done the violative line, knocking the shot loose, and creating a turnover — became 1 of the defining moments of the game.

For Hall, it didn’t consciousness similar a coincidence. It felt similar timing.

"I got to that Super Bowl and I got some sacks, and I’m like, man, ain’t nary clip similar God’s time," helium said. "That’s true, man."

In a play wherever helium had spent months waiting for accumulation to lucifer effort, the breakthrough came erstwhile it mattered most.

"Mentally it was pugnacious this year," helium said. "But similar I said, it’s a blessing."

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After the game, the numbers told 1 story: 2 sacks, a forced fumble, a championship. But for Hall, the meaning ran deeper, tied backmost to thing acold bigger than a stat sheet.

"You can’t archer maine that a kid with a 1 percent accidental to live… ends up being a Super Bowl champion 1 time without the Lord being successful their lives," helium said. "That’s a occurrence successful itself."

Now, Hall and his parent are tying that communicative backmost to wherever it began — the neonatal intensive attraction portion — done a concern with Huggies and its "Natural Born Fighters" campaign, which highlights premature babies and the attraction they person successful those earliest, astir fragile days. The run focuses connected supporting NICU infants with products designed alongside nurses and doctors to conscionable their circumstantial needs.

For Stacy, the concern is rooted successful memories that she inactive holds close.

"Both of my children really wore Huggies," she said. "And I really had 1 of their precise archetypal diapers… but present you gotta think, that’s 25 years ago, deliberation astir each the designs that they’ve done now… moving with the NICU nurses and doctors to make a diaper specifically for NICU babies, that to maine states the champion combat that you could ever privation to person for a marque that wants to marque definite that NICU babies person the champion opportunities astatine the precise opening of their fight."

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