Tampa Bay Bucs defensive tackle Gerald McCoy had a little more on his mind than football leading up to Thursday night’s home game against the Atlanta Falcons.
Reports came out after the 43-28 loss that McCoy’s New Tampa home had been broken into hours before kickoff and that his father, Gerald McCoy Sr., was injured by the burglar.
Bucs head coach Dirk Koetter said Friday he was made aware of the incident before the game and spoke with McCoy to make sure everything was okay.
“We were aware of that situation before the game and our security people, when they told me about it, assured me that everything was fine,” Koetter said. “I talked briefly to Gerald before the game, just to make sure he was okay. He seemed fine at that point. I just think anything else from that you should probably talk to Gerald about that next week.”
There was no open locker room media access Friday afternoon.
According to Tampa Police Department reports, Justin J. Frazier, 17, entered McCoy’s home through an unlocked door before being spotted by McCoy Sr. McCoy’s father, 59, engaged in a physical confrontation with the burglar and fractured his wrist in the process.
Frazier was apprehended after being found hiding in a neighboring residence. He’s described in the police report as a known runaway from Polk County with an existing criminal record.