Darius Fleming, a True Hero

Darius Fleming, a True Hero

Darius Fleming is a linebacker for the New England Patriots. As his team prepares to face the Denver Broncos this Sunday for the right to play in Super Bowl 50, Fleming's heroics off the field are making as much news as his play on it.

He was driving home from practice last week when he came upon a three-car collision. A woman was trapped in her car. "I saw her panic on her face," Fleming said later. He kicked in the passenger side window and pulled the woman to safety, cutting his leg in the process. He needed twenty-two stitches to close the wound.

Here's where the story takes a sad turn. The website TMZ Sports published a story claiming that officials had no record of the crash Fleming described. Critics soon began asking if he made up the story to disguise an injury or to raise his stock with the Patriots.

Then it was discovered that the local police department had, in fact, responded to an incident matching Fleming's description. According to their report, the woman in question told an officer that a person "kicked in my window, I think he was a Patriot."

Fleming later tweeted, "People are quick to try and bring you down…so sad."