Bad News : Guards could miss first playoff game

[packers11]

http://www.packersnews.com/includes/newspaper/blogs/insider/index.shtml


Injury update: Coston likely to miss first playoff game

Guard Junius Coston "may be (out) a couple weeks" because of the calf strain he suffered in Sunday's win over Detroit, coach Mike McCarthy said this afternoon.

The Packers also will be cautious with guard Jason Spitz, who suffered a quadriceps strain, but McCarthy is hopeful Spitz will be ready for the divisional playoff game Jan. 12.

Assuming Coston can't play, Daryn Colledge likely would start in his place at left guard. Tony Moll probably would start at right guard if Spitz is out, though Allen Barbre could play left guard and Colledge could play right.

The other two injuries from Sunday's game don't seem as significant. Cornerback Will Blackmon had "irritation" to his old foot injury but could practice Friday, McCarthy said. Running back Ryan Grant (stinger) is "fine" and was in to lift weights today.

[HarveyWallbangers]

Does it really matter. If one of the guys is out, then there will be no noticeable difference. Who knows... maybe Barbre would be just as good.

[PaCkFan_n_MD]

Not good news, coston has been playing much better than collegde. I really hope Spiltz is ok.

[PaCkFan_n_MD]

Does it really matter. If one of the guys is out, then there will be no noticeable difference. Who knows... maybe Barbre would be just as good.

I think it does. Having continuity on the o-line is very important and we were just starting to get that.

[Rastak]

Does it really matter. If one of the guys is out, then there will be no noticeable difference. Who knows... maybe Barbre would be just as good.


The Harv crystal ball in action!


Two weeks is a long time to treat these injuries....they both might be fine, who knows.

[HarveyWallbangers]

The Harv crystal ball in action!

Two weeks is a long time to treat these injuries....they both might be fine, who knows.

What?

How does having one of these guys out really matter (besides depth)? They don't even know which two should start out of the three. If one of them is out, it just makes their decision easier. They've been rotating them... trying to determine who should start.

[MadtownPacker]

Haven't changes been happening all season??? They can be healthy in 19 days.

[Bretsky]

Does it really matter. If one of the guys is out, then there will be no noticeable difference. Who knows... maybe Barbre would be just as good.


This is pretty much it; none of these guys are really that good and they are all inconsistent. Who knows if this really even matters.

[Rastak]

The Harv crystal ball in action!

Two weeks is a long time to treat these injuries....they both might be fine, who knows.

What?

How does having one of these guys out really matter (besides depth)? They don't even know which two should start out of the three. If one of them is out, it just makes their decision easier. They've been rotating them... trying to determine who should start.


Yea, if they all have the same or similar amount of snaps I guess so. I usually think losing OL starter is a bad thing. If they really have rotated in and out all year then it's no big deal. I only saw 6 or so games this year and I certainly didn't focus on the OL so you could be right.

[Bretsky]

GB has a bunch of OG's that are borderline starters. Nearly impossible to get full cohesion when they are in and out of the lineup.

[Patler]

I think the possible loss of Spitz is significant. He has started to take hold, and the battle was really only between Colledge and Coston recently. They even quit bouncing Spitz to the left side when Coston played. He was given the right side as his.

[Guiness]

Coston sure has seen a lot of the trainer in this, his first year seeing real action. Makes you pine for the days of Riviera, who took the issue of protecting Brett, and being out there week after week as a matter of personal and professional pride.

I'm sure the injury is significant. Just seem Riviera always seemed to manage somehow.

[Fritz]

I agree with Patler that Spitz is the key. He has been the best of the young bunch, and his absence would hurt.

As for the other two, I think the team just needs to make one jersey, put the name "Costedge" on the back, and just stick whichever of the other two is not hurt/playing better into the lineup.

[Patler]

Coston sure has seen a lot of the trainer in this, his first year seeing real action. Makes you pine for the days of Riviera, who took the issue of protecting Brett, and being out there week after week as a matter of personal and professional pride.

I'm sure the injury is significant. Just seem Riviera always seemed to manage somehow.

Tauscher too. The guy has been hobbled all year, could use the time off, yet there he was playing the second half against Detroit because others couldn't stay on the field.

Sometime I think it just comes down to the fact that some players can play effectively when injured and others can not. Rivera, Tauscher, and Clifton are guys who remain effective even when gimpy.

[Harlan Huckleby]

Sometime I think it just comes down to the fact that some players can play effectively when injured and others can not.

I think this is a myth. All NFL players are tough. And they all lose the same amount when their parts aren't functioning.

I know it is not a black and white issue, there are some differences in mental toughness, but it is greatly exaggerated in peoples minds.

Joey Harrington is every bit as tough as Brett Favre.

[Patler]

Sometime I think it just comes down to the fact that some players can play effectively when injured and others can not.

I think this is a myth. All NFL players are tough. And they all lose the same amount when their parts aren't functioning.

I know it is not a black and white issue, there are some differences in mental toughness, but it is greatly exaggerated in peoples minds.

Joey Harrington is every bit as tough as Brett Favre.

Has nothing to do with "toughness". More with mental focus, and not all people have the same abilities to focus on the task at hand, injured or healthy. It becomes more important when you are injured.

If you think all athletes (or people in general) respond the same to injuries and pain, in my opinion your are clearly wrong. Considering that to be "toughness" is also wrong, in my opinion. It is simply a physical response which is more intense in some than others. It's no different than some people being quicker and others being slower.

[Harlan Huckleby]

Has nothing to do with "toughness". More with mental focus, and not all people have the same abilities to focus on the task at hand, injured or healthy. It becomes more important when you are injured.


You are splitting hairs. You just defined mental toughness, after saying it has nothing to do with toughness.



If you think all athletes (or people in general) respond the same to injuries and pain, in my opinion your are clearly wrong.

pro athletes regularly deal with pain, it's part of football starting with highschool. I did not say people are the same, just that the differences among athletes is a lot smaller than what fans project into the players.

A related pet peeve is the "injury prone" accusation. If players were all exactly equally prone to injuries, I suspect the distribution of injuries would look something like it currently does. Somebody who flips "heads" three times in a row is not "heads prone." I observe that injuries occur in a roughly normal distribution.

I know a guy who is an extreme iron man type, unbelievably tough and disciplined. He was a middle linebacker for Duke back in the 60's when they were a top ten team, was drafted by the Cowboys. Anyway, he would play hurt sometimes, and said he was completely ineffective. In his experience, the "rub some dirt in it and get back out there" method is retarded.

[HarveyWallbangers]

Nah, some guys can better handle pain than others. Fact of life.

[Patler]

Has nothing to do with "toughness". More with mental focus, and not all people have the same abilities to focus on the task at hand, injured or healthy. It becomes more important when you are injured.


You are splitting hairs. You just defined mental toughness, after saying it has nothing to do with toughness.



If you think all athletes (or people in general) respond the same to injuries and pain, in my opinion your are clearly wrong.

pro athletes regularly deal with pain, it's part of football starting with highschool. I did not say people are the same, just that the differences among athletes is a lot smaller than what fans project into the players.

A related pet peeve is the "injury prone" accusation. If players were all exactly equally prone to injuries, I suspect the distribution of injuries would look something like it currently does. Somebody who flips "heads" three times in a row is not "heads prone." I observe that injuries occur in a roughly normal distribution.

I know a guy who is an extreme iron man type, unbelievably tough and disciplined. He was a middle linebacker for Duke back in the 60's when they were a top ten team, was drafted by the Cowboys. Anyway, he would play hurt sometimes, and said he was completely ineffective. In his experience, the "rub some dirt in it and get back out there" method is retarded.

The difference is that mental focus has nothing to do with a macho attitude as is commonly associated with "toughness" when talking about football players. Some of the most focused people I have encountered are the farthest thing from "tough" as is associated with athletes. It is simply concentrating on the task at hand. Some people do it better than others. In less than optimum circumstances they continue to function well. Others do not.

Maybe your friend had problems with injuries. Others don't as much. I've seen it with teams I have been associated with. It doesn't matter if he was/is an extreme iron man type or not. Other people are just the opposite. It is simply how they respond to discomfort or other situations. It doesn't make one tougher, stronger, more of a he-man or more of an iron man type. It is just who we are.

The differences are small, I agree. But the results are not.

As for tendency to injure, that is clearcut. People have different muscle/tendon/bone relationships in size, relative placement, strength, resiliency and elasticity. Some are more susceptible than others to different types of injuries. However, a lot of injuries in football, hockey and other contact sports are, as you suggest, just the result of circumstances.

[4and12to12and4]

I agree with Patler that Spitz is the key. He has been the best of the young bunch, and his absence would hurt.

As for the other two, I think the team just needs to make one jersey, put the name "Costedge" on the back, and just stick whichever of the other two is not hurt/playing better into the lineup.

:lol:

[Harlan Huckleby]

People have different muscle/tendon/bone relationships in size, relative placement, strength, resiliency and elasticity. Some are more susceptible than others to different types of injuries.

OK, sure, some biological variability. But this is not why players usually get labeled, I think chance is much more important. Davenport was fragile in Green Bay, then solid in Pittsburgh. Players often flip between periods of injury or good health.

[HarveyWallbangers]

Davenport has missed 4 games in Pittsburgh. Not bad, but it's not like he hasn't gotten hurt. Da Poop is injury prone because of his upright running style. I don't think it's toughness or biological.

[Ballboy]

This is why they worked hard for the bye week.

Even if the injury bothers them a little, they need to play cause ain't no next week if we don't win.

[Harlan Huckleby]

big backs always get the shit knocked out of them. Brockington didn't play long. neither did the Nigerian Nightmare.