Rookie Trent Taylor experienced his best day as a pro while battling a wicked combination of food poisoning and the flu. Before he caught a career-high six passes for 92 yards (his previous high was 47 yards) in the 15-14 win over the Bears in Chicago, Taylor went through an ordeal the night before.
“I woke about 1:30, 2 am, started puking, went back to sleep,” Taylor recounted. “Then (I) got up around 4, and stayed up for the rest of the night puking.”
Completely dehydrated, Taylor received three bags of intravenous fluid filled with nutrients and sugar to replace what he’d lost through the night.
By game time, he was still feeling nauseous and weak. But once he got into the huddle, adrenaline and his love of the game took over.
Taylor caught all six passes thrown to him, including a 33-yard catch-and-run on the 49ers’ final drive that got the 49ers eventually in position for kicker Robbie Gould’s piercing 24-yard field goal to win the game.
When Taylor wasn’t in the game, he went to the bench to catch his breath and calm down, so he didn’t start throwing up again.
“When on the sidelines, I was just trying to stay still, take deep breaths and be as calm as possible, so my stomach didn’t start to turn,” Taylor said.
He also said he was draped in fatigue every time the game’s adrenaline didn’t infuse his sickened body.
When the game ended, Taylor was still sick, and he said the plane ride home from Chicago was the longest of his life, because he couldn’t get comfortable.
Even by Wednesday, Taylor was eating what looked like a thin soup for lunch.
“Just trying to keep it light on the stomach,” he said.