The legend of Cincinnati Bengals center Ted Karras is even stronger than we knew it

Ted Karras accomplished quite a bit before all the work he's done in two years since joining the Cincinnati Bengals. 

A sixth-round draft pick by the New England Patriots back in 2016, he was a part of the last Super Bowl of the Pats' dynasty, and spent a season with the Miami Dolphins before returning to New England and eventually becoming the elder of Cincinnati's locker room.

It was during that year in South Florida Karras helped save the life of his teammate Mike Gesicki, who's now his teammate again in the Queen City.

Former NFL and Bengals quarterback Ryan Fitzpatrick, who was the Dolphins' QB when Karras and Gesicki were on the team, recalled the time when Karras ended up preventing him from choking to death.

"Mike was eating a steak and what you'll learn about Mike Gesicki is he has trouble cutting up his food and swallowing it. Mike's not usually quiet," Fitzpatrick told Geoff Hobson of Bengals.com. "Teddy looks over and Mike is choking on his steak and he has this look of panic in his eyes. He can't breathe. We don't know how long he's been like that. Probably five, ten seconds. Teddy Karras springs into action. You know Ted, of course. He's all about that action.

"Ted performs the Heimlich on Mike Gesicki and the steak spits out of his throat. He saved his life that night and now they're teammates."

It's these kinds of stories that don't always go public, but reveal so much about players who don't often get the spotlight. Karras has become a known figure in just two short years in Cincinnati not only because he's the guy snapping the ball to Joe Burrow every play, but his work with The Cincy Hat and raising awareness for adults with disabilities attracting so much support all the way to a Walter Payton Man of the Year fan challenge victory. 

Of course he'd be the guy to step in an take action to save a teammate's life. It's poetic that Karras went back to the Patriots and after Gesicki followed his lead to New England a year after Karras went to Cincinnati, they'll play another year together for the Bengals. 

Karras is already on his way to becoming a Bengals folk legend. Now there's even more lore to his story.