ALLEN PARK, Mich. — Detroit Lions receiver Nate Burleson broke his arm in a single-car accident early Tuesday after he reached over to keep two pizza boxes from falling off the front passenger seat, authorities said.
Burleson’s car hit a center median wall on a highway in suburban Detroit and he was taken to a hospital. Michigan State Police Lt. Mike Shaw said alcohol wasn’t a factor in the crash at 2:25 a.m.
Coach Jim Schwartz stopped short of writing off the rest of Burleson’s season, but surgery is scheduled for Wednesday.
“It’s not an emergency surgery,” Schwartz said. “Nate’ll be back at some point, and when he will, he will be a big contributor again to our team.”
The team didn’t say which arm was broken.
Burleson has a team-high 19 catches — 10 for first downs — and his 239 yards receiving trail only teammate Calvin Johnson this season. The 11-year veteran had six receptions for 116 yards, his highest total since 2007, on Sunday to help Detroit win at Washington for the first time in franchise history.
“Any time you’re in a highway accident, there’s potential for worse than broken bones,” Schwartz said. “I think we’ve all dealt with some sort of distraction driving before. I’ve cured myself of texting and driving. I did for about two months — and now I’ve got that SYNC thing with the Fords. I never even touch my cellphone in the car, but one thing that I probably need to cure myself of is eating and driving.
“There’s too many times I leave the office real late at night, and you grab something — and I’ve had it happen to me — drop it on your lap or do something else. That’s stuff we all need to learn from.”
The Lions signed Burleson in 2010 to complement Johnson, and he has done that when healthy. He had 128 receptions for 1,382 yards and nine touchdowns in his first two seasons in Detroit. Burleson, a charismatic presence on and off the field, is also one of the team’s leaders.
He broke his right leg last year at Chicago and missed the last 10 games of the season. Burleson bounced back this year by making six catches in the season-opening victory against Minnesota, one of his former teams, and had seven receptions in a Week 2 loss at Arizona. He has 437 career receptions for 5,408 yards and 38 TDs with the Lions, Seattle Seahawks and Vikings.
Detroit (2-1) likely will have to lean on other secondary receivers, such as second-year pro Ryan Broyles, on Sunday at home against the Chicago Bears (3-0) in a matchup of the top two teams in the NFC North.
Detroit’s depth chart at receiver also includes Kris Durham, Micheal Spurlock and Patrick Edwards, who was inactive with an ankle injury in Sunday’s win.