New York Giants punter Steve Weatherford escapes unhurt from crash on NJ Turnpike

NEW YORK (WABC) -- Steve Weatherford is happy to be alive. The Giants punter made it to practice on Monday after a harrowing trip home from San Diego, where he was spending time with his wife and their newborn girl.

On Sunday, Weatherford caught a noon flight back to Newark. In social media posts, he says thunderstorms forced the plane to land in Washington D.C., where Weatherford rented a car around midnight. As he passed Exit 8 on the New Jersey Turnpike, he hit trouble.

"It was dry road conditions running 50-60 mph. I guess there was a drainage clog and all of a sudden I hit a pretty thick pool," says Weatherford, "to be honest with you, I don't know how many times I spun around, but after maybe the second, third or fourth, I began to see the median coming at me."

Weatherford slammed into the median, and the airbags blasted him. He got out of the car, but before he could 911, another car slammed into his - that driver was initially unconscious.

"I was able to unbuckle him and pull him out of the back of the car, and then he kind of spilled himself on to the New Jersey Turnpike, then we got onto the shoulder," Weatherford says.

Minutes later, New Jersey State police officers came to the aid. Weatherford posted on social media and said that officers Adam Brozek and Kim Smith did not know he played for the Giants, but they went the extra mile for him. The muscle-bound man was understandably rattled by his near-death experience.

"I felt blessed before that, really feeling the love now," Weatherford says.

Weatherford was wearing his seatbelt, and has some bruising, cuts and burns from the airbags. He said he wanted to come to practice, because he missed 3 last week when his baby was being born.