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- The Dude
Ron Clements
<a class="postlink" href="http://ronclements.blogspot.com/2011/12/roethlisbergers-play-reason-to-sit.html" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;">http://ronclements.blogspot.com/2011/12 ... o-sit.html</a>
Sam Bradford wants to play and you would expect nothing less. The problem is that the sprained left ankle of the St. Louis Rams quarterback still hasn't healed right and won't until after the season.
"I’ve told Coach (Steve Spagnuolo) that I’m trying to get my ankle as healthy as quick as possible," Bradford said Tuesday. "I want to be out there soon as it’s good enough to go. I expect to be on the field. Now, obviously Coach and (head trainer) Reggie (Scott) still have to feel comfortable enough for me to be out there and feel that I can protect myself and that I can play at a level to help this team. As soon as I get back to that point, I expect to be back in the huddle.
"It’s my job. That’s why I’m here. I’m here to play football. I’m not here to ride the bike, I’m not here to sit on the sideline. No matter what happens. I mean why wouldn’t I want to play? You put so much time in, you put so much work in and then to just have it taken away and not to be able to go out there and do what you love to do, it’s not easy. It sucks sitting on the sideline. I don’t like it and it’s miserable. There’s nothing fun about it, so as soon as I can get back out there playing you’ll probably see me smile a little more.”
Bradford struggled in St. Louis' Monday night loss at Seattle, but didn't turn the ball over four times like Pittsburgh Steelers quarterback Ben Roethlisberger did Monday night against the San Francisco 49ers. I admire Bradford's desire to play. I just don't think it's smart for him to. But it's not like he's taking the decision to play lightly.
"Anytime you play football there’s a risk of injury," Bradford said. "Whether the risk of re-injuring this or creating further damage is more now as compared to a couple of weeks ago, I don’t know. I’m sure Reggie knows more about that than me, but that’s really not a concern to me. I think if it’s good enough to go, it’s good enough to go.”
I'm not sure if giving the player the final say-so is the right call either. A source in Pittsburgh told me that Roethlisberger will play Saturday against the Rams unless if his sprained ankle "suddenly swells to the size of Casey Hampton and won’t deflate." That decision is Roethlisberger's because, "it’s his call, his team."
Anybody who watched Roethlisberger struggle against the 49ers on Monday night knows how a high ankle sprain can affect a quarterback's game.
"It just changes your throwing mechanics," Bradford said last week. "It’s hard on my front leg. It’s not easy to come through and fully torque, and get everything I have into it where it kind of puts more stress on the arm. I’m not sure if it reduces arm strength, it just kind of limits your ability to put your entire body into throws at times."
Rams linebacker James Laurinaitis said he noticed how much Roethlisberger labored Monday night.
"When you have a high ankle, it limits what kind of plays you can call," Laurinaitis said. "Can you do a lot of play actions, a lot of bootlegs? Probably not. The guy has to run and roll out and that's something that's not really possible with a high ankle.
"One of the best things Ben does, he's no Michael Vick, but if you've watched him over the years, he's been able to break tackles and move around enough to get the ball out. When you limit him with his mobility, that ability to escape and extend plays, you limit a big part of what his game is."
<a class="postlink" href="http://ronclements.blogspot.com/2011/12/roethlisbergers-play-reason-to-sit.html" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;">http://ronclements.blogspot.com/2011/12 ... o-sit.html</a>
Sam Bradford wants to play and you would expect nothing less. The problem is that the sprained left ankle of the St. Louis Rams quarterback still hasn't healed right and won't until after the season.
"I’ve told Coach (Steve Spagnuolo) that I’m trying to get my ankle as healthy as quick as possible," Bradford said Tuesday. "I want to be out there soon as it’s good enough to go. I expect to be on the field. Now, obviously Coach and (head trainer) Reggie (Scott) still have to feel comfortable enough for me to be out there and feel that I can protect myself and that I can play at a level to help this team. As soon as I get back to that point, I expect to be back in the huddle.
"It’s my job. That’s why I’m here. I’m here to play football. I’m not here to ride the bike, I’m not here to sit on the sideline. No matter what happens. I mean why wouldn’t I want to play? You put so much time in, you put so much work in and then to just have it taken away and not to be able to go out there and do what you love to do, it’s not easy. It sucks sitting on the sideline. I don’t like it and it’s miserable. There’s nothing fun about it, so as soon as I can get back out there playing you’ll probably see me smile a little more.”
Bradford struggled in St. Louis' Monday night loss at Seattle, but didn't turn the ball over four times like Pittsburgh Steelers quarterback Ben Roethlisberger did Monday night against the San Francisco 49ers. I admire Bradford's desire to play. I just don't think it's smart for him to. But it's not like he's taking the decision to play lightly.
"Anytime you play football there’s a risk of injury," Bradford said. "Whether the risk of re-injuring this or creating further damage is more now as compared to a couple of weeks ago, I don’t know. I’m sure Reggie knows more about that than me, but that’s really not a concern to me. I think if it’s good enough to go, it’s good enough to go.”
I'm not sure if giving the player the final say-so is the right call either. A source in Pittsburgh told me that Roethlisberger will play Saturday against the Rams unless if his sprained ankle "suddenly swells to the size of Casey Hampton and won’t deflate." That decision is Roethlisberger's because, "it’s his call, his team."
Anybody who watched Roethlisberger struggle against the 49ers on Monday night knows how a high ankle sprain can affect a quarterback's game.
"It just changes your throwing mechanics," Bradford said last week. "It’s hard on my front leg. It’s not easy to come through and fully torque, and get everything I have into it where it kind of puts more stress on the arm. I’m not sure if it reduces arm strength, it just kind of limits your ability to put your entire body into throws at times."
Rams linebacker James Laurinaitis said he noticed how much Roethlisberger labored Monday night.
"When you have a high ankle, it limits what kind of plays you can call," Laurinaitis said. "Can you do a lot of play actions, a lot of bootlegs? Probably not. The guy has to run and roll out and that's something that's not really possible with a high ankle.
"One of the best things Ben does, he's no Michael Vick, but if you've watched him over the years, he's been able to break tackles and move around enough to get the ball out. When you limit him with his mobility, that ability to escape and extend plays, you limit a big part of what his game is."