On Collins: No News is Bad News?

[Bagadeez04]

Just thinking out loud here as I've been patiently waiting for word on Nick Collins future all week, we know he was supposed to sit down and meet with Packers management/coaches/docs this week.

If that indeed happened (not sure if it actually did or not), and we haven't heard anything out of anyone, I would think that's not good. Only thing I can think of is they wanted to let him inform teammates/family members etc... before the news got out.

But hey, just speculating here.

 

[PackMan13x]

OR...maybe he got the results and the doctor has cleared him and left it up to him and his family and he is taking time to consult as many people as possible and is still weighing all options. That's what I'm hoping anyway.

 

[SpartaChris]

Read on twitter from one of the Packers writers (I have no idea who) that he wasn't expected to make a decision about his future this week but that the doctors supposedly gave the OK. The difficulty has been trying to convince the team to let him play.

Remember, Mike McCarthy said this was going to be a very slow process, and that he would prefer for Collins to hang it up rather than risk some kind of permanent, life changing injury. I'd be shocked if we heard anything before the draft.

 

[FrankRizzo]

I feel and fear the same thing, that the delay is bad news.
One would be much more eager to share good news, as stated in the bible.
Bad news? Like this? One would fight it, deny it, prolong it as long as possible.

Hope like heck I, we, are wrong on this one. Love Collins. Feel he is our 3rd or 4th best player, behind AGod and Clay, and maybe Jennings.
Think it showed last year with 36 out.

 

[Bagadeez04]

I just can't see playing safety with all the hard hitting and tackiling, with a serious neck injury.

 

[weeds]

I feel and fear the same thing, that the delay is bad news.
One would be much more eager to share good news, as stated in the bible.
Bad news? Like this? One would fight it, deny it, prolong it as long as possible.

Hope like heck I, we, are wrong on this one. Love Collins. Feel he is our 3rd or 4th best player, behind AGod and Clay, and maybe Jennings.
Think it showed last year with 36 out.

I'm with you, FR. I was listening to Chris Havel and Harry Sydney last night on the ride home from work and Harry was speculating that Collins has already shared the bad news with Ted and MM but COULD be holding back at the Pack's request due to the draft being right around the corner. I recognize it's some pretty wild speculation but let's face it, the Pack have a tendency to play everything real close to the vest - one of the reasons that I like Thompson and really liked Wolf.

Perhaps... just PERHAPS...the Packers legal team is drawing up an all-encompassing waiver of liability for Collins to sign if he is given clearance to play and chooses to do so. (Just tossing that out there to display my quasi-positive outlook on this topic. As I said, if #36 were my son, I'd be telling him to hang it up...as a fan, I'm hoping he doesn't. How's that for fence sitting?)

 

[FrankRizzo]

I'm with you, FR. I was listening to Chris Havel and Harry Sydney last night on the ride home from work and Harry was speculating that Collins has already shared the bad news with Ted and MM but COULD be holding back at the Pack's request due to the draft being right around the corner. I recognize it's some pretty wild speculation but let's face it, the Pack have a tendency to play everything real close to the vest - one of the reasons that I like Thompson and really liked Wolf.

Perhaps... just PERHAPS...the Packers legal team is drawing up an all-encompassing waiver of liability for Collins to sign if he is given clearance to play and chooses to do so. (Just tossing that out there to display my quasi-positive outlook on this topic. As I said, if #36 were my son, I'd be telling him to hang it up...as a fan, I'm hoping he doesn't. How's that for fence sitting?)

Good fence-sitting. I can see all sides to that.
And yep, if my son, I'd tell him to hang it up too.
That's why my 8-year old son only plays flag football too though!
And why we don't plan on letting him play tackle football..... Collins has 4 kids. But he wants to play and he's not a head-leader.
That injury should have happened to Louis Delmas or Ryan Clark (who are), not Nick. Dammit.

 

[Bagadeez04]

I'm with you, FR. I was listening to Chris Havel and Harry Sydney last night on the ride home from work and Harry was speculating that Collins has already shared the bad news with Ted and MM but COULD be holding back at the Pack's request due to the draft being right around the corner.

Now that's some interesting speculation right there, Ted wanting to keep this secret makes loads of sense...it would be very tough to keep this a secret for two-plus weeks though. The way it is today with the interwebs and Google machines, I'd say it's virtually impossible.

 

[jaybadger82]

I posted this article in another thread. Sounds like fused vertebrae don't represent a heightened risk in themselves as long as they heal appropriately.

FWIW, I'm hearing that Collins wants to come back and that he's been cleared by doctors. Sounds like it's the team that doesn't want him coming back...

 

[TJV]

Ted Thompson has called the NFL a "big boys league" on more than one occasion. Although I doubt he has used the phrase in this context, I think it applies. It is admirable for Thompson and McCarthy to be concerned about Nick Collins' health, both short-term and long-term. And it's even more admirable for them to be so concerned that they seem to be putting that concern over the interests of the Packers on the field: I hope they care more about him as a man than as a Packers player and I believe they do. As I've posted, if Collins decides to retire I will completely understand and will be forever grateful to him for his contribution to the Packers generally and for his significant contributions to the 2010 championship team.

But whether or not Collins wants to assume whatever additional risks he may incur in resuming his NFL career is entirely his decision. He's the "big boy" in this situation (and of course I don't mean that in a pejorative way). If Collins does indeed decide to resume his career the risks he will assume will be equal no matter which NFL team he joins. So if Thompson and McCarthy release him because they don't want him to assume those risks he's willing to take, they will not be "protecting" Collins' health or future one iota. They would only be salving their own consciences. And by doing so, they would be damaging the Packers while Collins assumes risks with which he is completely familiar, anyway.

Again, if Thompson and McCarthy convince Collins to retire, I will be fine with that. But if their convincing doesn't work, there's no reason not to welcome him back to the Packers. He is an intelligent adult who can make decisions about his future and take responsibility for the ramifications of those decisions.

Of course I hope I'm jumping the gun here and Collins will either retire or resume his career with the Packers.

 

[HyponGrey]

Just thinking out loud here as I've been patiently waiting for word on Nick Collins future all week, we know he was supposed to sit down and meet with Packers management/coaches/docs this week.

If that indeed happened (not sure if it actually did or not), and we haven't heard anything out of anyone, I would think that's not good. Only thing I can think of is they wanted to let him inform teammates/family members etc... before the news got out.

But hey, just speculating here.

Under normal circumstances I'd say that he met with his doc last week, the tean this week, and we'll find out next week. However since the draft is only two weeks away, and Collins return affects the draft, given TT likes to play close to the vest we probably won't hear until after the draft sometime.

 

[realcaliforniacheese]

If the docs say that there is no more risk to him playing than if he had not had the fusion then I see no reason for him not coming back. If there is then game over. If it's game over then they are not going to advertise we are in need of a Safety just before the draft. My gut says Nicks playing days are over.

 

[HyponGrey]

I believe they will announce his return right after the draft, possibly within the hour of Mr. Irrelevant. Still, I can't shake this sinking feeling.

 

[Arrigo]

Players want to play no matter what. If they are old & done, or if hurt, they want to play. They have been conditioned to think that way (to play hurt) otherwise 1. They will lose their jobs and 2. they will be called "soft".

To say "it's up to the player" puts the player at risk 90% of the time.

While I am not a person that agrees with all the "rule" changes that many feel makes the "softer", I am for teams taking a stand with certain types of injuries and telling a player "NO, we are not going to allow you to take that type of risk on our team, and feel it is best for you and your long term health & future to NOT play."

To me that type of statement would not only speak volumes to fans, but also teammates and the NFL as a whole.

Nick is always going to want to play, hell look at Brett Favre, he still wanted to play for how long?! In 2008 I broke my arm (humorous) pitching (literally while I was releasing the ball) in a semi-pro baseball game and now have a rod and 8 screws in it. I can't throw ANYWHERE NEAR what I used but I still want to play. I haven't played in an adult softball game, played catch w/ my sons, or even walked onto a diamond as a player since I broke it, but I still have that urge to go out there.

My point is as a player or former player sometimes you have to have people tell you "enough is enough". In my case my wife had been telling me for a year that she would rather me stop playing. 6 weeks before I broke my arm, my teammate broke his the exact same way, releasing a pitch, and for the 1st time since I started playing ball (at the age of 6) I got scared on the field and started to question and re-evaluate things. After I heard my arm break in mid-pitch, I knew it was over. My wife never told me "I told you to stop", instead she said "let's find something else for you to put as much passion into" (outside my family).

I think (and this is my opinion) that Mrs. Collins & family would rather be safe then sorry with Nick. WE would not have to help Nick with therapy, help him bathe, clean him after he uses the restroom, take him to various Dr. appointments or worse, lay him to rest, THEY WOULD. It seems to me like people are far to concerned with "what it would do to the Packers" vs what it would do to a family.

 

[TJV]

As you read stories about other players who have had the type of surgery Collins had, you will see examples of players choosing to retire rather than risk permanent injury. Terrence Murphy and Tim Lewis are two examples of Packers who retired after serious spinal injuries rather than risk injury. Nick Collins has said explicitly that if the doctors tell him there’s an increased risk of injury, he’ll retire. So while players certainly want to play, they don’t always in the case of these types of injuries.

To say “it’s up to the player” IMO is a statement of fact, whether we like it or not. What is the alternative? All the teams in the NFL colluding to decide that Peyton Manning and/or Nick Collins cannot pursue their NFL careers no matter what medical experts say? Other than further enriching anti-trust attorneys and endangering the NFL’s exception to anti-trust laws, what would that accomplish? If leading medical experts in this field OK players’ return to their NFL careers, IMO it will be, and should be up to players.

As to being more concerned about the Packers than Collins’ health, I for one have posted I would be fine with Nick deciding to retire. My concern is if Collins, after consulting with doctors and his family, decides to continue his NFL career the Packers not allowing him to do so in Green Bay. Certainly many other teams will allow him to. If that happens, what message would that send to fans, teammates and the NFL as a whole?

Ultimately if the doctors sign off on it, it’s Nick Collins’ decision. He’s responsible for his decisions and his actions. And as long as he isn’t diminished mentally, that’s the way it should be IMO.

 

[armand34]

As excited as I would be to see him suit up and play, it's just not worth it for him if there's even the slightest risk...not just for health reasons, but I doubt he could play as hard as he did w/o constantly worrying about what may happen...I have no issues with him retiring and as a fan I would hate to see him go.

 

[Dan115]

Did Nick show up for conditioning today?

 

[B-ri]

Now that's some interesting speculation right there, Ted wanting to keep this secret makes loads of sense...it would be very tough to keep this a secret for two-plus weeks though. The way it is today with the interwebs and Google machines, I'd say it's virtually impossible.

True, but who has space for a google machine nowadays?

 

[Bagadeez04]

True, but who has space for a google machine nowadays?

They're so bulky it's tough to say...you almost have to dedicate an entire room in your house to it. But Google is so nice to have if you can find the space.

 

[ivo610]

I remember we had this o lineman that got blindsided on a return, who ended up in the hospital.

I feel like he came back n had a decent career.

 

[Dan115]

You mean Clifton?

 

[realcaliforniacheese]

I remember we had this o lineman that got blindsided on a return, who ended up in the hospital.

I feel like he came back n had a decent career.

Yeah talk about a dirty play. Well we will know for sure after the draft, I hope Ted is just playing mind games with the other GM's as part of the pre-draft gamesmanship.

 

[FrankRizzo]

I remember we had this o lineman that got blindsided on a return, who ended up in the hospital.

I feel like he came back n had a decent career.

Glad that Warren Sapp is not bankrupt, and I hope he ends up in jail.
Payback, karma is a ******.

 

[DevilDon]

They're so bulky it's tough to say...you almost have to dedicate an entire room in your house to it. But Google is so nice to have if you can find the space.

What with microelectronics and all these days, it's conceivable they will some day make a smaller and cheaper version.

 

[Bagadeez04]

What with microelectronics and all these days, it's conceivable they will some day make a smaller and cheaper version.

One day in the not so distant future, it's conceivable that we will be able to fit our Google machines into a cabinet, or under a desk. With the interwebs being what they are today, the possibilities are endless!