Michael Irvin

PHILADELPHIA – As Michael Irvin lay crumpled and motionless on the Veterans Stadium turf Sunday afternoon, many of the Eagles' fans began cheering.

The longer Irvin remained on the ground during the Cowboys' 13-10 loss, the more the crowd roared. The cheers reached an apex, when a stretcher was brought onto the field for Irvin.

"It disgusted me to death," Emmitt Smith said. "It's just a game. That's what it's called - a game. Life. Being paralyzed. Death. Anything outside of the game is reality. No matter how you look at it, sports is sports but a human being is playing the sport.

"I understand people want to cheer for their team and they want their team to win, but when you see an individual laying down there motionless, there's no need to cheer. There's nothing joyful about watching a person get hurt."

The injury occurred when Irvin caught an eight-yard slant in the first quarter. He tried to break a tackle and dipped his head when he saw safety Tim Hauck about to hit him.

The top of his head slammed into the turf. The injury was diagnosed as a swelling in his spinal cord.

Irvin, who will not play next week against the New York Giants, spent Sunday night at the Thomas Jefferson University Spinal Trauma Center.

Philadelphia has a reputation for having some of the most boisterous and raucous fans in the NFL. They also have a reputation for having fans who are hard to control.

A few years ago, the city actually put a court in the stadium so people who misbehaved during the game could be quickly sentenced.

The fans' behavior on Sunday left players and coaches on both teams seething.

"To me there's no excuse for that," coach Chan Gailey said. "I'm disappointed it happened. That's the nicest term I can use. I better not say anything else."

Philadelphia receiver Charles Johnson, who scored the winning touchdown, said the crowd's reaction embarrassed him.

"The most disgusting thing was when the stretcher came out, and they started cheering again," Johnson said. "The fans usually end up hating the good athletes, but he's a human being. He has a family and he's getting wheeled off on a stretcher, it puts everything in perspective."

For a while, Smith said, an incident like that can inspire a team because they feed off the anger created by the crowd's reaction. But, he said, it quickly wears off.

"You realize that you're on the football field minus one of your teammates," he said, "but eventually you have to get over it."