Philadelphia Eagles star wide receiver A.J. Brown did not wait for Friday’s parade to celebrate winning the Super Bowl with fans.
Brown visited the Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia on Wednesday with the Lombardi Trophy in hand to visit with 10-year-old Andre Howard III, who heroically protected his sister from debris after a medical transport plane crashed in Philadelphia late last month.
In an open letter to Brown shared on Facebook, Andre’s mother thanked the NFL star for the “love and support” he showed her son.
“Thank you for being a man of your word. By great surprise on this day my son was beyond grateful to meet you,” he message read. “Caught us all by surprise. For Someone ‘(ANDRE)’ my son who usually talk so much, you had him smiling from ear to ear and Mute.
“I felt his heart pounding through his chest. The amount of love and support you gave being so patient and calling Saquon Barkley for him was beyond appreciated. Thank you for everything and bringing that WIN home for ‘TRE’ the world’s greatest SUPERHERO.”
A.J. BROWN SAYS WINNING SUPER BOWL ‘WASN’T WHAT I THOUGHT IT WOULD BE;’ LOVE FOR GAME ‘COMES WHEN I DOMINATE’
Andre and his family had gone out for donuts the night a medical transport jet crashed into a Philadelphia neighborhood, killing all six people on board. His father, Andre Howard Jr., said they were in the car when debris started hitting the vehicle.
Howard saw his son in the backseat covering his sister.
“I turn around — there’s a piece of metal sticking out of my son’s head from the plane,” Howard said.
Andre, a devout Eagles fan, underwent emergency brain surgery and one of the first questions he asked his dad when he woke up was if he had missed the Super Bowl. He had not.
Brown responded to photos of the visit posted by the NFL, calling Andre “my hero.” He said before the big game that he would be “playing” for Andre on Sunday, with hopes of visiting him soon “with some hardware.”
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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