Thursday, October 21, 1999
Coach has new outlook after surgery
BY GEOFF HOBSON
The Cincinnati Enquirer
Just how stressful this season has been for those who work for the Bengals hit home Wednesday as assistant coach Al Roberts discussed the angioplasty he underwent last week.
Roberts, who coached at Friday morning's practice, found himself undergoing a procedure Friday afternoon to clear an artery that was 70 percent blocked.
On Sunday, he was sitting on the bench watching his special teams continue to suffer through a dreadful season. But this time he didn't yell.
“I was yelling a little bit today when the guys were dragging around,” Roberts said Wednesday. “The only thing I have to cut back on is beating up on (sports writers.)”
Roberts was joking, but there was no levity Friday. He made an appointment for a stress test a few weeks ago when his chest tightened after running to a high school football game. After the stress test, the doctor told Roberts he needed double bypass surgery — which would knock him out for two to three months — or the angioplasty, which would cost him two to three days.
“People just off the street wouldn't be back, but Coach Al is. He's a trip,” kicker Doug Pelfrey said. “He loves us. He wanted to be here. He could have stayed home all weekend. I haven't seen him that calm in awhile (during Sunday's game) ... I thought it was neat the way guys reacted. I thought guys played hard. Guys ran a little harder on kickoffs for him. I thought we covered well for him.”
Roberts, 55, a devout Christian, has been tested several times this year. April's tornado tore him and his wife from their bed and destroyed their Sycamore Township home. And his special teams have contributed at least a gaffe a week to the Bengals' 1-5 season.
Now he's taking aspirin, blood thinner and medication to lower his cholesterol from 220 to 130. He couldn't sit in the press box Sunday because he had to be close to a doctor in case his incision opened.
“I write notes to God every day,” Roberts said. “Thanking (Him) for another day ... If someone dies in a tornado, that's a bad year. If someone dies of cancer, that's a bad year. I made it.”
Roberts was told he could have died of a heart attack in three seconds or three years. No one knows. So he is vowing no longer to take the X's and O's home with him. The low snaps, blocked punts and holding calls are going to have to stay at Spinney Field.
“(God) told me, "Wisdom. Check it out,'” Roberts said.
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