the future of finley

[3irty1]

No issue with the hit, or Finley's head lowering. Sometimes people just get hurt playing football and we don't need a new rule to prevent that.

[Carolina_Packer]

Assuming Finley goes on IR, do the Packers entertain bringing any of these guys in? http://walterfootball.com/freeagents2013TE.php (I see Matthew Mulligan on the list). Anyone else interest you?

[Fritz]

Assuming Finley goes on IR, do the Packers entertain bringing any of these guys in? http://walterfootball.com/freeagents2013TE.php (I see Matthew Mulligan on the list). Anyone else interest you?

Here's a quote that helps explain why the Packers don't bring in much outside help:

"We have a pretty good handle on what they [Packers who have been with the team] can do,"[Tom] Clements said. "They've been here since the spring, most of them have been here since the spring and throughout training camp so it's just a matter of taking what we know about them and putting them in a position to be successful. We know what their strengths are, what their weaknesses are and we're not going to try to get them to do things they're not comfortable or capable of doing."

Read more from Journal Sentinel: http://www.jsonline.com/sports/jermi...#ixzz2iTBjLXli
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[pbmax]

The narrowing won't stop him from playing as they already said there was no spinal damage and he won't have to get anything fused.

Well there HAD to be spinal cord damage or he wouldn't have been temporarily unable to move or process sensation (this is, I think, a fair reading of various incomplete reports but it could easily turn out to be not the case). Now they may expect him to heal fully and lose no function but that isn't the same thing as no damage. I had not read they ruled out vertebra damage, but that would be fortunate.

But as for narrowing, I can't see how a quick recovery rules out further risk. If the injury can be repeated, he would be in line to suffer the same injury. Suffered again, he could be faced with a worse outcome. I don't think you need a structural failure to exacerbate stenosis. But I have been wrong before.


EDIT: Vague recollections of discussing this with Collin's injury give me the impression that a physical injury to the spinal column DOES in fact make the stenosis worse as the inevitable inflammation and then scarring further narrow the available space. So 3irty1 might have a better bead on this than I; however, I don't remember if stenosis by itself without physical aggravation would preclude continuing with his career.

[hoosier]

Well there HAD to be spinal cord damage or he wouldn't have been temporarily unable to move or process sensation (this is, I think, a fair reading of various incomplete reports but it could easily turn out to be not the case). Now they may expect him to heal fully and lose no function but that isn't the same thing as no damage. I had not read they ruled out vertebra damage, but that would be fortunate.

But as for narrowing, I can't see how a quick recovery rules out further risk. If the injury can be repeated, he would be in line to suffer the same injury. Suffered again, he could be faced with a worse outcome. I don't think you need a structural failure to exacerbate stenosis. But I have been wrong before.


EDIT: Vague recollections of discussing this with Collin's injury give me the impression that a physical injury to the spinal column DOES in fact make the stenosis worse as the inevitable inflammation and then scarring further narrow the available space. So 3irty1 might have a better bead on this than I; however, I don't remember if stenosis by itself without physical aggravation would preclude continuing with his career.

I have not seen any reports discussing stenosis in Finley at all, my understanding is that is what is now being investigated. If Finley does have a stenosis condition that existed before the hit (may still be unknown), the bruising could could certainly leave scar tissue and make the condition worse. And if he turns out to have stenosis, he may never get cleared to play again regardless of how quickly and completely he recovers from the bruising. There is no medical consensus about how bad the stenosis has to be before a player is pulled, and the Packers seem to trend conservative when it comes to clearing high risk players. http://inside.akronchildrens.org/201...spinal-column/

[Bossman641]

I have not seen any reports discussing stenosis in Finley at all, my understanding is that is what is now being investigated. If Finley does have a stenosis condition that existed before the hit (may still be unknown), the bruising could could certainly leave scar tissue and make the condition worse. And if he turns out to have stenosis, he may never get cleared to play again regardless of how quickly and completely he recovers from the bruising. There is no medical consensus about how bad the stenosis has to be before a player is pulled, and the Packers seem to trend conservative when it comes to clearing high risk players. http://inside.akronchildrens.org/201...spinal-column/

Is stenosis a genetic condition? If so, wouldn't teams want to test players for that before they invest millions in them; both for their sake and the players'? I thought it was solely caused by trauma.

[3irty1]

The event of a ruptured disk in the neck resulting in fusion of vertebra on top of stenosis is extremely rare in the NFL. The packers have 2 of like 5 or 6 players to ever encounter it. If he had a spinal structural problem such as a disk like Collins we would already have known as it would show up on an x-ray. A bruised spinal cord is likely all we've got although that's plenty bad on its own. They keep you in the ICU, drug you for swelling, rehab you for your lingering symptoms. Symptoms are typically more severe the higher up the injury occurs. Hence Finley's dramatic paralysis. He could easily lose strength and/or control in his extremities that will require physical therapy. My initial guess is that he'll be on the PUP next year.

[hoosier]

Is stenosis a genetic condition? If so, wouldn't teams want to test players for that before they invest millions in them; both for their sake and the players'? I thought it was solely caused by trauma.

Some cases are congenital but most often it results from old age, with trauma and scarring a distant second cause. I think the diagnosis is pretty complicated and is driven by the symptoms the patient is experiencing. Stenosis is a rare condition in the young adult population, so MRIing thousands of football players each year would not be a good use of resources. I am not sure how much normal variation there is among individual spinal canals, but it could be that you really cannot begin the diagnostic process unless the patient is experiencing some tell-tale symptoms.

[Patler]

My initial guess is that he'll be on the PUP next year.

If he is still rehabing this injury next summer I doubt that any team will sign him until he receivers medical clearance to play. Maybe someone would risk a split salary contract, with a minimal salary if he is not playing, but the signing bonus would still be an issue. A one year contract doesn't make a lot of sense until he is cleared to practice.

[red]

My initial guess is that he'll be on the PUP next year.

so you're thinking we resign him then put him on the PUP?

i'm guessing that if its something that is gonna keep him out that long that no one is gonna sign him this of season, unless maybe we do for dirt cheap with maybe big money showing up in the second year and beyond if he can continue to play

[Teamcheez1]

I wish Jermichael Finley the best and full recovery, however, if he is out for the rest of the year, I think it's time to move on next year without him.

He may be the best TE we have on the team right now, but I don't think he has ever reached his potential (injury or otherwise). For $8M, I expect to see a Gonzalez, Gates, Gronkowski, Witten, etc. at the position. Six seasons later, I just don't see it happening. Now if we can sign him to an incentive laden, bare bones contract of a couple of million, it may be worth the risk.

I wish him the best, but it may be time to move on without him, even if he is capable of resuming his career

[red]

If he is still rehabing this injury next summer I doubt that any team will sign him until he receivers medical clearance to play. Maybe someone would risk a split salary contract, with a minimal salary if he is not playing, but the signing bonus would still be an issue. A one year contract doesn't make a lot of sense until he is cleared to practice.

maybe something like a 3 year deal with no signing bonus and minimal salary in the first year, the big roster bonuses in years two and three to make up for the lack of a signing bonus?

i don't know really know what the team should do at this point. do you try and resign him now? do you wait until you know he's healthy and then have to compete with everyone else?

gonna be a tough call for TT

[red]

I wish Jermichael Finley the best and full recovery, however, if he is out for the rest of the year, I think it's time to move on next year without him.

He may be the best TE we have on the team right now, but I don't think he has ever reached his potential (injury or otherwise). For $8M, I expect to see a Gonzalez, Gates, Gronkowski, Witten, etc. at the position. Six seasons later, I just don't see it happening. Now if we can sign him to an incentive laden, bare bones contract of a couple of million, it may be worth the risk.

I wish him the best, but it may be time to move on without him, even if he is capable of resuming his career

before the injury me and some others were talking about how it was time to move on, draft a big guy with sure hands in the draft and use that big money elsewhere. finley was just worth the money he was making this year and if he was still looking to make that kind of money then he was not worth it IMO

him being hurt though might just drop the asking price way down

[Guiness]

What happened to Bryce Paup? I thought he had an injury that hasn't his (premature) departure from GB.

[red]

bryce had a pretty long career after he left green bay

with the bills wasn't it? he might have even been defensive player of the year or something like that