Injuries Are Part Of The Game - Know When To Draw The Line

It is time, it is time my friends. NFL week 7 picks are here.

But before we get to business let me shed a little light on two big NFL injuries that have happened so far this year:
I originally was going to make this my weekly picks article, but I had too much on my mind about Trent Green and ended up writing more than I planned to. Like I said, two big NFL injuries that have happened so far this year (picks coming in a little bit):

First, Buffalo Bills' Kevin Everett has begun walking and is determined to continue his progress in his rehab from his spinal cord injury. It was his first statement since the injury happened in the Bills week 1 loss to the Denver Broncos.

It is going to be a great day for Everett, his teammates, and Bills fans when he is able to attend a game in Buffalo and support his team from the sidelines.

Second, Trent Green awaits his doctor's word on whether they will clear him to play after suffering a Grade 3 concussion.

Attention Green's doctors, tell him to retire. Before the season, Dolphins' defensive end Jason Taylor expressed concern about Green's ability to take a hit; he knew. Taylor knew that Green was susceptible to injury if he got hit hard enough.

The hard part about being in Green's position is that he is a football player. No football player, or any athlete for that matter wants to be told to retire. Scratch that, whenever anybody in this world is doing something they love they want to leave on their own terms.

We see that all the time in sports, but especially in football because of the physical nature of the sport. Injuries do end careers. But the glaring factor in this sort of injury is the long term effects on the person, not the player. There is life after the NFL for these players, and the doctors need to make sure that the players get to that life in a good physical state.

This sort of thing reminds me of "Iron Mike" Webster, a Hall of Fame center for the Pittsburgh Steelers who hiked the ball to Terry Bradshaw en route to four Super Bowl rings before suffering post-NFL injuries that ruined his life as a person.

On the field he was invincible, but after football it all fell apart due to the injuries suffered while playing the game. It may have been in a different era of time, but the results can be the same if the proper attention is not paid to players injuries.

The following is a link to a story I read a couple of years back about "Iron Mike" Webster: A Tormented Soul. It follows the story of life after football for Webster and is an excellent read when you have time. It is a five-part series (the remaining parts can be found on the link provided).