NFL

Merriman's decision to avoid surgery a bad one

Warrior's decision to play through pain puts his NFL career at risk

Mike Blake / Reuters file

Chargers linebacker Shawne Merriman’s decision to ignore medical advice on his pair of torn knee ligaments is a bad one. And if he doesn’t do something about it, the Chargers should, writes AP football writer Dave Goldberg.

From the player’s perspective, it’s a complicated issue. How hurt am I? Do I really have to sit out and let everybody down? Will I pay a price?

At a recent dinner with three players, two of them Hall of Famers, the discussion inevitably turned to Upshaw, a friend of all of them.

One noted that during his playing years in the 1960s and ’70s, he was probably knocked unconscious 14 or 15 times and went right back into the game. He recalled being congratulated on an interception after one game.

“I didn’t even know I’d had one,” he said.

Another said he’d injured a knee and was set for surgery the following Tuesday. At the coach’s request, he held off, played and wound up skipping surgery all together. Today, that knee is fine — though he has pain in the other knee, which did undergo surgery following a separate injury.

That’s the Russian roulette of playing in the NFL, especially at a time when people were less aware of the long-term damage of injuries or concussions. The guy who was knocked out so many times fortunately retains all his faculties at age 67; the guy with the knee injuries is over 60, limps a little, but still plays golf.

Compared to some of their contemporaries, they’re lucky.

NFL rules approved just a couple of years ago are aimed at reducing the consequences of injuries. No one can be sent back into a game these days after being knocked out, for instance. And the decision to operate on Umenyiora’s knee may help ensure that he’ll be walking normally as he ages.

But Merriman’s decision, Tomlinson’s comment on it, and Upshaw holding out against symptoms that most people wouldn’t ignore, demonstrate the difference between many athletes and mere mortals.

Players often think of themselves as bulletproof.

If Shawne Merriman’s career, interrupted in 2006 by a four-game steroid suspension, is terminated early because he played when he shouldn’t have, blame the warrior mentality. But also blame the people who should have known better.

In three seasons, he’s played at an All-Pro level.

It would be a shame if he can’t do it for another 10.

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