As Signs of Concern Spread, NFL Revisits Concussions
BALTIMORE — In this crucial division contest, a game full of playoff implications, it was whom the Pittsburgh Steelers did not start that highlighted the increased awareness of concussions across the N.F.L.
On the sideline, in an emergency third-quarterback role, stood Ben Roethlisberger. His Steelers (6-4) needed a victory Sunday night to remain a game behind Cincinnati in the American Football Conference North. They needed to beat the Baltimore Ravens to keep pace for the at-large playoff berths.
As recently as Thursday, Roethlisberger practiced as the starter and said he was cleared to play. Then came the headaches, the likely result of the hit Roethlisberger took last weekend, when a linebacker’s knee collided with his head in overtime against Kansas City.
By Saturday, Roethlisberger had been removed from the starting lineup, replaced by a backup named Dennis Dixon who had thrown a grand total of one pass in N.F.L. games that counted before Sunday.
The message was that it was Roethlisberger’s health that mattered most, regardless of how much he wanted to return.
He was joined by several high-profile players who missed games Sunday because of head injuries. That list included Arizona quarterback Kurt Warner, Roethlisberger’s counterpart in February’s Super Bowl, along with running backs Brian Westbrook of Philadelphia and Clinton Portis of Washington.
Warner also expected to play Sunday against Tennessee, but because his eyes were still not adjusting properly and because he felt stiffness in his neck, he missed the Cardinals’ last-second loss to the Titans. Afterward, Warner estimated his latest concussion, sustained last week against St. Louis, was his fifth.
“We erred on the side of caution,” Warner told reporters in Nashville.
Of those teams, only the Eagles won, and their standout receiver, DeSean Jackson, got a concussion in the process.
This came after the N.F.L. and Commissioner Roger Goodell were scolded last month by the House Judiciary Committee for their handling of brain injuries. The league has since introduced initiatives, including the addition of medical evaluations by independent doctors before players are allowed to return to play after sustaining a concussion.
On NBC’s game telecast Sunday , Hines Ward said the Steelers players were split “50-50” on whether Roethlisberger should have played. Ward said he had lied to doctors and played with concussions, adding that, “these games, you don’t get back.”
On Sunday, Fox reported that this week Goodell would send all teams a memo expanding on when to remove a player with a head injury or a concussion. Under current rules, players can return to a game if they are without symptoms and cleared by the team doctor.
Goodell addressed the issue of player safety Sunday in a roundtable discussion on NFL Network. He said that players needed to “take advantage” of the best equipment and alert doctors when they were injured.
He also said the league needed to limit its off-season training, and he lauded the approach of one team he did not name, which requires players to take time off depending on how many plays they participated in during the previous season.
“We’re not in the business of ending careers,” Goodell said. “We’re trying to extend careers.”
The Steelers used an independent neurologist long before Goodell’s recent policy change. The independent evaluation was part of the testing done on Roethlisberger this week, part of the reasoning behind downgrading his status.
Roethlisberger’s latest concussion was his fourth documented head injury since the Steelers drafted him before the 2004 season. He had two concussions in 2006, including a heavily publicized one after a motorcycle crash, and another in the final regular-season game last year.
On Thursday, Roethlisberger said he took a “thousand” tests and passed each of them with “flying colors.” He spoke about the “violent, physical” nature of football, about the bruises that cover bodies. That line of thinking, critics reasoned, was exactly why players need to be protected from themselves.
Research indicates there is a cumulative negative effect on the brain after multiple concussions. The Steelers planned all week to be cautious, and they did not hesitate in removing Roethlisberger from the lineup.
Instead, it was Dixon, the former Oregon standout, under center Sunday night. Just last week, he was the Steelers’ third-string quarterback, but injuries to Roethlisberger and Charlie Batch (broken left wrist), changed his role dramatically. The Steelers also activated Tyler Palko, who was signed to the practice squad on Wednesday, to serve as Dixon’s backup.
By losing to the Chiefs, the Steelers had fallen into the muddled middle of the A.F.C. playoff picture. Against the Ravens, the Steelers were also without safety Troy Polamalu, defensive end Aaron Smith (out for the season) and left guard Chris Kemoeatu because of injuries.
Not that the Ravens felt sympathy. At 5-5, they were fighting for their own survival.
The last time these teams met, a berth in the Super Bowl was on the line. Back then, Roethlisberger had three career concussions, not four, and he wore a helmet instead of the black baseball cap he turned backward Sunday night.
His absence, like those of Warner, Westbrook and Portis, also indicated a heightened awareness for head injuries. Even as the playoff chase unfolded.
BALTIMORE — In this crucial division contest, a game full of playoff implications, it was whom the Pittsburgh Steelers did not start that highlighted the increased awareness of concussions across the N.F.L.
On the sideline, in an emergency third-quarterback role, stood Ben Roethlisberger. His Steelers (6-4) needed a victory Sunday night to remain a game behind Cincinnati in the American Football Conference North. They needed to beat the Baltimore Ravens to keep pace for the at-large playoff berths.
As recently as Thursday, Roethlisberger practiced as the starter and said he was cleared to play. Then came the headaches, the likely result of the hit Roethlisberger took last weekend, when a linebacker’s knee collided with his head in overtime against Kansas City.
By Saturday, Roethlisberger had been removed from the starting lineup, replaced by a backup named Dennis Dixon who had thrown a grand total of one pass in N.F.L. games that counted before Sunday.
The message was that it was Roethlisberger’s health that mattered most, regardless of how much he wanted to return.
He was joined by several high-profile players who missed games Sunday because of head injuries. That list included Arizona quarterback Kurt Warner, Roethlisberger’s counterpart in February’s Super Bowl, along with running backs Brian Westbrook of Philadelphia and Clinton Portis of Washington.
Warner also expected to play Sunday against Tennessee, but because his eyes were still not adjusting properly and because he felt stiffness in his neck, he missed the Cardinals’ last-second loss to the Titans. Afterward, Warner estimated his latest concussion, sustained last week against St. Louis, was his fifth.
“We erred on the side of caution,” Warner told reporters in Nashville.
Of those teams, only the Eagles won, and their standout receiver, DeSean Jackson, got a concussion in the process.
This came after the N.F.L. and Commissioner Roger Goodell were scolded last month by the House Judiciary Committee for their handling of brain injuries. The league has since introduced initiatives, including the addition of medical evaluations by independent doctors before players are allowed to return to play after sustaining a concussion.
On NBC’s game telecast Sunday , Hines Ward said the Steelers players were split “50-50” on whether Roethlisberger should have played. Ward said he had lied to doctors and played with concussions, adding that, “these games, you don’t get back.”
On Sunday, Fox reported that this week Goodell would send all teams a memo expanding on when to remove a player with a head injury or a concussion. Under current rules, players can return to a game if they are without symptoms and cleared by the team doctor.
Goodell addressed the issue of player safety Sunday in a roundtable discussion on NFL Network. He said that players needed to “take advantage” of the best equipment and alert doctors when they were injured.
He also said the league needed to limit its off-season training, and he lauded the approach of one team he did not name, which requires players to take time off depending on how many plays they participated in during the previous season.
“We’re not in the business of ending careers,” Goodell said. “We’re trying to extend careers.”
The Steelers used an independent neurologist long before Goodell’s recent policy change. The independent evaluation was part of the testing done on Roethlisberger this week, part of the reasoning behind downgrading his status.
Roethlisberger’s latest concussion was his fourth documented head injury since the Steelers drafted him before the 2004 season. He had two concussions in 2006, including a heavily publicized one after a motorcycle crash, and another in the final regular-season game last year.
On Thursday, Roethlisberger said he took a “thousand” tests and passed each of them with “flying colors.” He spoke about the “violent, physical” nature of football, about the bruises that cover bodies. That line of thinking, critics reasoned, was exactly why players need to be protected from themselves.
Research indicates there is a cumulative negative effect on the brain after multiple concussions. The Steelers planned all week to be cautious, and they did not hesitate in removing Roethlisberger from the lineup.
Instead, it was Dixon, the former Oregon standout, under center Sunday night. Just last week, he was the Steelers’ third-string quarterback, but injuries to Roethlisberger and Charlie Batch (broken left wrist), changed his role dramatically. The Steelers also activated Tyler Palko, who was signed to the practice squad on Wednesday, to serve as Dixon’s backup.
By losing to the Chiefs, the Steelers had fallen into the muddled middle of the A.F.C. playoff picture. Against the Ravens, the Steelers were also without safety Troy Polamalu, defensive end Aaron Smith (out for the season) and left guard Chris Kemoeatu because of injuries.
Not that the Ravens felt sympathy. At 5-5, they were fighting for their own survival.
The last time these teams met, a berth in the Super Bowl was on the line. Back then, Roethlisberger had three career concussions, not four, and he wore a helmet instead of the black baseball cap he turned backward Sunday night.
His absence, like those of Warner, Westbrook and Portis, also indicated a heightened awareness for head injuries. Even as the playoff chase unfolded.
Source: New York Times
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