The Los Angeles Chargers dealt with one of the strangest and scariest situations during Sunday’s showdown against the Denver Broncos. Early in the game, head coach Jim Harbaugh was seen running into the blue medical tent, which is normally reserved for players.
Read more: Chargers HC Jim Harbaugh Leaves Game vs Broncos After Dealing With Apparent Illness
After getting looked at by doctors, Harbaugh was then seen heading straight into the locker room. He was immediately ruled questionable to return with an “illness.” Now, that illness has been explained by the man himself.
Jim Harbaugh said he has atrial flutter, a type of arrhythmia that causes the upper chambers of the heart to beat 250 to 350 times per minute. A flare up today is what caused him to leave the game. pic.twitter.com/YiGDPab4d3
— Kris Rhim (@krisrhim1) October 13, 2024
Harbaugh spoke to reporters after the game, and explained that he was dealing with an “atrial flutter.” According to ESPN’s Kris Rhim:
“Jim Harbaugh said he has atrial flutter, a type of arrhythmia that causes the upper chambers of the heart to beat 250 to 350 times per minute. A flare-up today is what caused him to leave the game,” Rhim’s post reads.
Brooke Sutton/Getty Images
Harbaugh apparently felt his heart going a bit crazy and was immediately looked at by doctors. The Chargers head coach even explained that he felt this type of arrhythmia back when he was coaching the San Francisco 49ers.
Harbaugh stated, “2-0 with arrhythmias,” referencing the second time that it occurred when he was coaching the 49ers.
In typical Harbaugh fashion, he joked by saying, “I am medically qualified to talk about it.”
The good news is it sounds like Harbaugh is fine after experiencing the scary heart issue. Harbaugh apparently got an EGK and tests were immediately done to determine if he was out of danger.
During the event, Jim’s brother John Harbaugh (head coach of the Baltimore Ravens) was immediately pulled from a press conference. John went to check in on the health of his brother.
With Jim being taken out of coaching, defensive coordinator Jesse Minter stepped in as interim head coach of the Chargers. Minter and the team got the job done, as Los Angeles earned their third win of the season against the Broncos with a final score of 23-16.
The Chargers were in control the entire game, and the defense caused all kinds of chaos for Broncos quarterback Bo Nix.
Even though Harbaugh experienced such a harrowing incident, he was able to return to the team to give another passionate victory speech to his team.
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With Harbaugh back and the Chargers getting healthy in terms of players, the team should get plenty of confidence from Sunday’s win. Heading into Week 7, they will take on the Arizona Cardinals.
For more on the Chargers, head to Newsweek Sports.
