NFL Doctor Concerned About Glenn Dorsey, Two-Year-Old Leg Injury a Potential Problem

Blogging the National Football League, Blogging the NFL

My friends from NFL Draft Scout just alerted me to this news. An NFL team doctor said there are serious concerns over the lingering effects of a 2006 stress fracture in the right tibia of LSU’s highly-rated defensive tackle Glenn Dorsey. Glenn is generally considered a top-five prospect in April’s NFL Draft. He underwent a physical Saturday at the Scouting Combine and was subsequently sent to the hospital for additional tests. At his Combine presser today Glenn admitted he was put through a grueling battery of tests but contends he is ready to play in the NFL and has no concerns about his past injuries, although he does understand why NFL teams are curious:

“I haven’t spoken to anybody about how the tests came out. I got to the hospital around nine o’clock and left around 6:30. I had MRI’s, I had CAT scans, I had everything. I mean there were stingers from high school they wanted to check out ….. When you are one of the top players people are looking for the negatives. They are looking for anything. But I played four years. I played every game since I’ve been with LSU. Who doesn’t get hurt during the year?”

Glenn Dorsey was measured at 6-1 1/4, 297 pounds, and elected not to work out, explaining he stopped preparing for the Combine because of the death of his grandmother. However, the NFL team doctor said there are still issues with the tibia and it is raising red flags among NFL teams because it is in an area that is difficult to heal. Glenn played most of the 2006 season at LSU with the injury, and took painkillers before every game. He wore a bone stimulator for up to 18 hours per day until he was cleared to practice in the spring of 2007. And although he has been the target of some infamous chop and double-team blocks, he explained the injury to his leg happened in the weight room.

Glenn is clearly one of the best players in this class. And a rare talent at defensive tackle. My concern is that if his leg injury is not fully healed, how much risk is a team taking by drafting him? He’s a big guy and I wonder if his leg will stand up to the constant pressure. It’s hard to argue with his body of work, though. He didn’t miss a game at LSU because of injury so it would seem to me durability should not be an issue for interested NFL teams. But that’s part of what the Combine is all about. If there is even an inkling of concern about an injury (past or present), it will be revealed here.

This information is courtesy of NFLDraftScout.com, published by The Sports Xchange.