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The Doctors had to keep going into Tom Brady’s knee to contain an infection.

While Brady acknowledged on his Web site that he had one arthroscopic procedure done to “clean and to test the wound” last Wednesday, the Herald has learned there have been two additional procedures performed since that time, with the same goal in mind.

According to the source, the fear is the patellar tendon graft used to replace Brady’s anterior cruciate ligament is in danger of becoming compromised. Should that occur, the entire ACL reconstruction would have to be removed and redone from scratch.

That would push back his rehab and recovery period, which in turn, could delay his return to the field.

source

The Patriots are 1 game behind the Buffalo Bills and have two shots left on the schedule to beat them. New England would love to have Tom Brady back as soon as possible.

Photo source Newscom

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If Shawne Merriman wants to run in the NFL, he may have to sit

The Chargers have arguably had one of the best teams in the NFL for the last 2 years, but things happen and the Chargers have no Super Bowls to show for it.

The road to the Super Bowl seems blocked by the New England Patriots and the Indianapolis Colts and that is just in their conference. So, you can see that everything has to be working. Last year an injured Philip Rivers, at QB, and an injured LaDainian Tomlinson, at running back, hurt their chances in the playoffs.

Now it looks like Shawne Merriman, the sack specialist could be out for the year.

Merriman said he has tears in both the posterior cruciate and lateral collateral ligaments. He said doctors agree that he needs surgery to repair the damage.

“It could be career-threatening if I did (play),” Merriman said. “It’s a possibility. That possibility is still open.”

A course of action has not been decided. Merriman, who will consult with a doctor in Miami early next week before making a decision, has been told reconstructive surgery would sideline him for the entire 2008 season. Another option is a less-invasive surgery that would allow him to play at some point in the season.

source

Coach Norv Turner will have his work cut out for him if Shawne Merriman misses the whole season.

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Tarvaris Jackson sprains his MCL

So how has your life been going lately?

If you are Tarvaris Jackson the answer might be “not good”.

First the Vikings tried to get in the Brett Favre sweepstakes that would have made Brett the starter and not Tarvaris, and then Tarvaris injured his MCL in a preseason game by being too aggressive and was criticized for it.

Jackson will probably miss the preseason as a precaution against further injury as it was just a sprain.

Top it off; Tarvaris did not have a stellar year last year.

the passing game, ranked 28th in 2007, must be better. The deep threat provided by free-agent signee Bernard Berrian should help, but Jackson’s progress is critical.

source

Could be a tough year for Jackson and the Vikings are depending on him a lot. If the Vikings are to go to the Super Bowl, it will be Tarvaris Jackson that takes them there, whether Adrian Peterson has a great year or not.

Just a note here. Brett was a Packer. Berrian was a Bear. What? No Lion?

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Javon Walker - Darrent Williams died in his arms

Image details: Oakland Raiders v Denver Broncos served by picapp.com

The former Denver Broncos wide receiver, now current Raider, Javon Walker, was beaten, robbed, and left unconscious, his face battered, as he was found on a Las Vegas street.

Police say he was robbed.

You remember Javon. He has been a pretty good second receiver in fantasy football the last couple of years.

Walker, 29, signed a six-year, $55 million deal with the Raiders after being released by the Denver Broncos in February.

Walker sought a fresh start after Broncos teammate Darrent Williams died in his arms in the back of a limousine on Jan. 1, 2006 in downtown Denver.

In a 2007 “Real Sports” interview, Walker said then teammate Brandon Marshall and his cousin exchanged heated words with two men who later confronted Williams and his group after taking offense when Marshall sprayed them with champagne.

The drive-by shooting remains unsolved.

source

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Hey, it is a true story. Dan Campbell plays TE for the Detroit Lions and has had three surgeries on his elbow.

It had been his Achilles’ heel. Twice he had surgery. Twice he tried to come back early. Both times he had trouble.

Now the elbow has an actual Achilles tendon in it.

Campbell had surgery a third time Sept. 21. An elbow specialist reattached the triceps tendon — what was left of it, anyway. Then he reinforced it with an Achilles tendon from a cadaver.

source

Now surgery is a way of life in the NFL, but this is a little unusual.

It didn’t bother Dan Campbell at all.

“I said, ‘Get it fixed. I don’t care what it takes,’ ” Campbell said. “I did have some questions about, ‘Well, how does that work?’ You hear about transplants, different organs or stuff like that.

“Actually, that’s what he said. He said, ‘This isn’t organs, man. You don’t have to worry about it. It’s not like your body’s going to reject it or something.’ ”

How is Coach Marinelli doing?

Dan was asked to compare current Coach Rod Marinelli and he came up with a comparison to a former coach, Bill Parcells, the Big Tuna himself.

He talked about how Big Tuna broke you down and Rod Marinelli builds you up and says have fun.

Dan went on to say how the Lions have rebuilt the team in Rod’s image and that it was going to be a special year, especially with the help of the dead guy.

NFL Football special comment The Lions have a pretty easy looking schedule and could be poised for a big year. It remains to be seen how the changes brought on by Marinelli pan out.

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Byron Leftwich never got untracked in Atlanta

Atlanta is taking a deep breath and now exhaling.

There, that felt better, but something is different.

Oh geez, look, the whole stinking team is gone.

It started with Michael Vick and the dogs and then the team went to the dogs.

They hire and lost Bobby Petrino at coach so fast, you hardly knew he was there.

Now the player losses mount as they clean house and prepare to rebuild.

The Atlanta Falcons released four-time Pro Bowl tight end Alge Crumpler and six other players Friday in the first step of a major rebuilding job in the post-Michael Vick era.

The Falcons also cut quarterback Byron Leftwich, defensive tackle Rod Coleman, offensive tackle Wayne Gandy, cornerback Lewis Sanders, wide receiver Jamin Elliott and linebacker Marcus Wilkins. source

Alge Crumpler was often a favorite target of Michael Vick. Vick could somehow throw the short pass to big Alge consistently. It led to a lot of Atlanta’s minor air success with Vick at QB. (Squibster Note: Alge Crumpler was on my Fantasy Football team at that time)

Without Vick and putting in new coach Bobby Petrino’s system, Alge fell out of favor eventually ending up with a hurt knee. Now he is just a money liability.

None contributed more than Crumpler, one of the team’s most respected players and a leader in the locker room. He twice led the Falcons in receptions and had a streak of four straight Pro Bowl appearances from 2003-06.

But Crumpler was plagued by knee problems this past season and dropped off to 44 receptions. Also, he counted $5.1 million against the salary cap for 2008, money the Falcons felt could be better spent elsewhere.

Byron Leftwich

At the QB position, there is Read more

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Gisele showing protective boots to provide relief from high ankle sprains

In the world of where there is smoke then something somewhere had to have burned at some point, you will find Tom Brady.

He is definitely hurting.

A high ankle sprain is not trifling matter. It restricts mobility to a great degree. It makes you slow and unable to react at normal pace.

Tom is hurting.

Does this mean anything?

Yes and no.

Yes, because an ineffective Brady changes everything.

No, because there is still a lot of time before the Super Bowl and unlike if you sprain your ankle, the pros in the NFL get far better treatment and consequently return from injury far quicker.

Here is what has happened so far.

New England coach Bill Belichick said reporters would be informed after practice if Brady participated. Stacey James, the Patriots’ vice president of media relations, said Friday night that he had no update on whether Brady practiced.

Brady was photographed in New York on Monday wearing a protective boot on his right foot. He took it off later in the day and hasn’t been photographed wearing it since. He reportedly has a minor high ankle sprain that isn’t expected to keep him out of the Super Bowl against the New York Giants on Feb. 3. source

Reporters in the locker room waited for Brady, but he never showed up, although there were clothes in front of his locker. Most likely Read more

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Mike Florio of Yahoo.com took a look around the NFL and gives you his Top 5 Trends for the NFL for next year. Your intrepid author’s comments are in italics.

1. College coaches need not apply

The Nick Saban and Bobby Petrino experiences are all the evidence any NFL owner should need to scratch the names of all college coaches from the list of candidates for open jobs in January ‘08….

In college, the best coaches are the best recruiters. He who hoards the most talent can win without a 100-page playbook, a game plan or a well-timed time out. Pro football has a flat playing field — leveled by the salary cap and free agency. So the talent gap is small.

NFL success arises from finding a way to consistently get more out of players of, for the most part, relatively equal abilities.

Squibster: Whoa, hold on here. Don’t condemn all college coaches for Saban and Petrino. Certainly a college coach may need some learning time, but come on. Besides, owners are not this smart or we would not have the Detroit Lions.

2. It’s still a league of quarterbacks

Though talent is compressed in the NFL, the biggest differences exist at the quarterback position. There simply isn’t one capable quarterback per franchise…

The dynamic is played out most obviously in Minnesota, where young starter Tarvaris Jackson has been unable to take advantage of the eight-man fronts clogging Adrian Peterson’s running lanes…

It’s no coincidence that the best teams feature guys like Tom Brady and Peyton Manning and Tony Romo and Brett Favre. As long as they play at a high level, their teams will remain in contention for the Lombardi Trophy.

Squibster: Hey no mention of Jon Kitna? Thus the value of Read more