Packers set to release Terrence Murphy

route25

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Packers to release Murphy
Receiver suffers from spinal cord condition
By TOM SILVERSTEIN
[email protected]
Posted: April 19, 2006
Apparently unwilling to accept the risk of having wide receiver Terrence Murphy play football with a serious neck condition, the Green Bay Packers are on the verge of announcing that they are parting ways with the 2005 second-round pick.

Two National Football League sources said Wednesday night that the Packers were set to move on without Murphy and were discussing with his representatives how to best handle his release.

The Packers had very high hopes for Murphy after selecting him out of Texas A&M with the 58th pick in the draft last season. But after he suffered a bruised spinal cord and numbness in his arms and legs following a violent collision with Carolina safety Thomas Davis on a kickoff return Oct. 3, doctors discovered Murphy suffered from an existing condition known as stenosis or a narrowing of the spinal cord.

In the months after the injury, Murphy saw a slew of specialists, including renowned Los Angeles spinal surgeon Robert Watkins. The Packers were believed to have received a number of different evaluations of Murphy's condition, but apparently sided with those who thought there was significant risk in putting the 6-1, 196-pound receiver on the field.

General manager Ted Thompson said last month that he planned to sit down with his medical staff and review all the test results, then make a decision on Murphy's status. Thompson could not be reached for comment Wednesday night.

However, one source said "it was looking that way" when asked if the Packers were close to making an announcement that they would not be able to pass him on his physical examination. The source said it was unclear when the Packers would announce the decision, but a source close to Murphy's family said that Murphy was already aware of the decision.

If the Packers fail Murphy on his physical, he will become a free agent able to negotiate with any other team in the league. It's unclear whether Murphy will seek a team that will view the results of his tests differently or retire from football.

In December, more than two months after the injury, Murphy expressed optimism that he would be able to resume his career. But he acknowledged that the risk factor was something he would have to consider strongly and was going to see what the various specialists had to say about the injury.

Murphy admitted that if forced to undergo surgery to fuse his vertebrae that he would not continue playing. One of the people Murphy planned to consult was Milwaukee Bucks guard T.J. Ford, who played college basketball at Texas and was an acquaintance of Murphy's. Ford was also diagnosed with stenosis, but was able to return to the basketball court after having two of his cervical vertebrae fused.

"I don't want to do that," Murphy said at the time. "If it comes down to that I just might (quit). It's not 100% that would help me come back."

Murphy was just starting to make his presence known when he picked up a fumbled kickoff by teammate Najeh Davenport and took a shot from Davis. Murphy had five catches for 36 yards and five kickoff returns for 91 yards when his season ended.

At the time, coach Mike Sherman was making a concerted effort to get him more involved in the offense. Powerful and a good route runner, Murphy fit the West Coast offense well and would have been a prime candidate to be one of the team's top three receivers this season.

The Packers are now down to two receivers - Donald Driver and Robert Ferguson - who saw significant action last season and will have to count on veteran Rod Gardner and newcomer Marc Boerigter to help fill Murphy's void. The club still doesn't know for sure whether it will have Javon Walker, who has vowed never to play for the team again because of a contract dispute.

Among the players who will be vying to make the roster are Chad Lucas, who set an NFL Europe record with four touchdowns in a game earlier this month, and practice squad players Vince Butler and Ruvell Martin. Receiver is not a very deep position in the draft so the Packers will be hard-pressed to find someone of Murphy's caliber.




This is a setback, but not much of a surprise, I suppose.
 

pyledriver80

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Yeah, Imagine working you whole life to reach a goal only to reach it and no longer being able to do it. Certainly a shame
 

IPBprez

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Wonder if he might try staying in the NFL as an Assistant to Coaches in some form - graduate into the ranks as LeRoy and a few others have done. ????
 

DePack

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IPBprez said:
Wonder if he might try staying in the NFL as an Assistant to Coaches in some form - graduate into the ranks as LeRoy and a few others have done. ????

Tim Lewis did it. Remember that Monday night game in '86 when he went down. Same thing...wasn't able to come back. Now he is one of the top defensive coordinators in the league with the Giants and is always a candidate for head coach.
 

Chamuko

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I am sorry about him..

And I am sorry at our WR corps..... T.O. would have looked great here, specially now..

Driver: 2nd receiver, forced into 1st receiver.

Gardner: need to proove what he is made of.

Boerigter: IMHO 4 th or 5th receiver, nothing better.

Fergy: Already proveen he is made of .... mmmmm.... chewing gum?

Only one proveen Receiver..... nice situation here...
 

spardo62

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Sad to see potential quashed before even getting a chance to shine. This further increases the need for receiving help and unfortunately the draft is somewhat thin at that position.

May heat up trade discussions with Denver for Lelie or cause Davis to be a wiser selection at # 5 than Williams or Hawk.
 

CaliforniaCheez

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It won't be long until every player at the combine gets a full body MRI.

$3k a player bulk rate and an open ended for bigger linemen. It would add a day to each player at the combine. The info would be shared with the whole league. At the end of a career a player would know how much cartilage is left in certain areas. A trade would involve getting a comparison MRI of area of concern to compare to the rookie one.

Murphy's congenital problem would have been known in advance. I still think the Packers would have drafted him though.

There are unforseen things that make having more draft picks a good strategy. A team "spreads their bets".

I think Mr. Thompson will trade down the first pick. Draft picks are a 50-50 shot so getting more is a good thing.

There is no blame for the Murphy situation. Sometimes bad things happen.
 

DePack

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"Murphy's congenital problem would have been known in advance. I still think the Packers would have drafted him though."

I'm not sure what you are getting at. Is that a shot at TT?
 

MontanaBob

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Spinal stenosis is a congenital problem that, in most cases, cannot be detected by an MRI or any other method. It is usually found AFTER an injury that requires surgery. Stenosis is a narrowing of the spinal channel that allows nerves and the spinal cord to travel through. Sort of like an hour glass figure. Many people have this and don't realize it. I do have it in the lumbar area and after three surgeries had to have a L3-4-5 fusion and cage put in.
I just wonder how many players, from high school to the pros, are just one hit away from permanent injury?

At least Terrance can get on with his life normally....just not doing what he had in mind.
 

HatestheEagles084

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such a shame...

With Murphy out of the equation and Javon Walker, well...how much does this mean we should draft a reciever...

Right now the depth chart stands at Driver, Gardner, Ferguson, Boeritger

All this does is create another need--a reason why I'm kind of getting a gut feeling that TT does not keep the 5th pick and moves down a bit, we have holes on this team...either the free agents dont wanna come here or Ted doesn't wanna spend for them, regardless we need help at cornerback, linebacker, d-line, o-guard, reciever...
 

CaliforniaCheez

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DePack, I wasn't taking a shot at anyone. I thought I conveyed that when I said there was no blame for the situation. I just think that in the future part of the NFL combine will be more diagnotic testing to try and find these types of things.

Even with the knowlege teams will still take chances as a player may go years before it is a problem. Look at Favre's hip problem. I think the Packers still would have drafted Murphy.

I don't think Murphy is suffering any problems but He just can't risk another hit like that in the NFL. A receiver is in great danger of such a hit.
 

DePack

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MontanaBob said:
Spinal stenosis is a congenital problem that, in most cases, cannot be detected by an MRI or any other method. It is usually found AFTER an injury that requires surgery. Stenosis is a narrowing of the spinal channel that allows nerves and the spinal cord to travel through. Sort of like an hour glass figure. Many people have this and don't realize it. I do have it in the lumbar area and after three surgeries had to have a L3-4-5 fusion and cage put in.
I just wonder how many players, from high school to the pros, are just one hit away from permanent injury?

At least Terrance can get on with his life normally....just not doing what he had in mind.

WOW....are you a doctor? Or did you just stay at a Holiday Inn express last night? :lol:
 

WinnipegPackFan

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More on Terrance :

By Rob Demovsky
PackersNews.com

It’s looking more and more likely that receiver Terrence Murphy will be unable to continue his NFL career.

The Green Bay Packers have been meeting with Murphy and his agent, Doug Hendrickson, who was in town earlier this week after another round of tests were completed on Murphy’s injured neck.

An announcement regarding Murphy’s future could be made soon, possibly even before the draft, although the Packers might want to keep Murphy’s status a secret until after the April 29-30 selection weekend.

“We’re still talking over that,â€
 

PackerLegend

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That Sucks And I Feel Awful For This Kid, I Thought He Was Something Special, Thanks Alot Najeh If You Only Could Have Held Onto The Ball.


Instead Of Number 85 In A Bengals Uniform, who couldn't be stopped.
"Who Can Stop 85 In 2005"

It Could Have And Would Have Been Number 85 Of The Green And Gold
"Who Can Stop The Real 85 In 2006"
 

MontanaBob

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DePack....no, I'm not a doctor, but with four back surgeries and a two tier spinal fusion; a total knee replacement (sets of security alarms); three shoulder surgeries; and 12 broken bones; I own part of my Doctors swimming pool and have a surgical suite named for me at Missoula's St. Patrick Hospital.

I do have EMT training but have not renewed my license for several years. I spent summers for awhile as a fire line medic on forest fires out here, but gave that up when I almost bit it on a fire only 3 miles from our home. Got caught at the top of an unburned fire chute while administering first aid and watched an entire half mile gully burn uphill and over us in less than 20 seconds. Not fun!
 

4packgirl

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MontanaBob said:
DePack....no, I'm not a doctor, but with four back surgeries and a two tier spinal fusion; a total knee replacement (sets of security alarms); three shoulder surgeries; and 12 broken bones; I own part of my Doctors swimming pool and have a surgical suite named for me at Missoula's St. Patrick Hospital.

I do have EMT training but have not renewed my license for several years. I spent summers for awhile as a fire line medic on forest fires out here, but gave that up when I almost bit it on a fire only 3 miles from our home. Got caught at the top of an unburned fire chute while administering first aid and watched an entire half mile gully burn uphill and over us in less than 20 seconds. Not fun!

good God - you're like indiana jones or somethin, Bob!! :wink: :D
 

DePack

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MontanaBob said:
DePack....no, I'm not a doctor, but with four back surgeries and a two tier spinal fusion; a total knee replacement (sets of security alarms); three shoulder surgeries; and 12 broken bones; I own part of my Doctors swimming pool and have a surgical suite named for me at Missoula's St. Patrick Hospital.

And he goes by the nickname "Lucky" :lol:
 

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