Lions head athletic trainer Dean Kleinschmidt couldn’t help but get a little emotional when asked about Lions quarterback 
Kleinschmidt is responsible for getting players patched up, rehabbed and back onto the field by Sunday.
He’s had to put a little overtime in on Hill over the last year.
Hill broke his left forearm against the Giants in October of 2010, which required surgery, a plate and screws to be inserted to keep the arm stabilized – he played on.
Hill then broke the index finger in his throwing hand against the Patriots on Thanksgiving – he rehabbed and returned four weeks later to play on.
During the lockout, Hill suffered a ruptured disk in his lower back that required surgical intervention – he played on and never missed a rep in training camp.
On top of all that, Hill had to deal with the tragic loss of his father, Ted, in January of 2011.
Ted, who was Hill’s best friend and high school football coach, died in an accident while working with Hill on a project on Hill’s farm in Missouri.
To say the least, it’s been a tough year for Hill.
But through it all he’s persevered and was an easy choice to be honored with this year's Ed Block Courage Award.
“This is a guy that deserves the award,” Kleinschmidt said. “He’s a pro’s pro and a man’s man. He’s done so much football stuff and then the tragedy. He's a guy first- and second-year players can look up to."
A number of teammates came to support Hill, including
“I think quarterbacks sometimes get a perception of being pretty boys,” he said. “But Shaun might be one of the toughest guys on the team and I really respect him. He has a lot of fight in him and a lot of grit and showed that last year playing through injuries.”
Each of the league’s 32 teams selects a Ed Block Courage Award recipient who is then recognized nationally at a banquet in Baltimore in March.
Tuesday night’s event at Ford Field, and the one in Baltimore in March, benefit child abuse prevention and treatment programs at HAVEN.
“Anytime you are voted on by your peers for an award like this it’s quite an honor,” Hill said.
“I was very determined, some would say stubborn, to get out there after the forearm and then after that it was the finger. And actually (the finger) was probably the worst just with the past history I’ve had with the finger and the type of injury it was. That was a tough one and then dealing with the back all last season, too. The good news is that all of those are behind me now and I’m completely healthy and Matthew is the one out there taking the hits now.”
Hill joked during his speech that Stafford has taken his spot in the training room.
“He’s the consummate professional, every day coming into work and doing the right things,” Stafford said of Hill. “He’s been through a lot on and off the field, playing through broken fingers and broken forearms and then obviously going through the tragic loss of his dad, so, it’s something that means a lot to our quarterback unit and it means a lot to me, too.”
