Breaking News Lewan may have torn ACL (confirmed)

If he’s out that long and comes back in the playoffs he will mess up whatever chemistry the line developed without him. I can’t see that happening unless the offensive line is terrible without him. Since he’s already missed a ton of snaps this year and the lines held up, I think they will be fine.

 

Ok, here's a full study from 2005. According to this, college OL were among the highest % of any position to have ACL knee injuries requiring surgery.

And another from 2019. This one just shows that college OL ACL injuries occur somewhere in the same rate as other positions. It's discussing the return to play rate, and states that OL are amongst the fewest to make it back.

I can't guarantee that all of these OL wore braces, but considering that a majority of college OL do, I'd say it's pretty reasonable to say that many, if not all of them, were wearing braces when they tore their ACL.

I found an article talking about Dr. David Chao saying he recommends all OL wear them, but he's also the guy that stabbed Tyrod Taylor in the lung, and has multiple other marks against his record in his past, so I'm not exactly sure how much I trust him in general.

I can say from my own experience in wearing knee braces and playing OL, they're ****. They limit your mobility significantly and I felt far more prone to having my leg being put into a compromising situation than without them. They're really only useful when you've had a sprain or injury and need additional stability to give you support. A healthy knee does not need a brace.

I said it before, but no brace would have saved Lewan. Braces only possibly help provide stability to a healthy knee when you have outside forces acting on the knee. He landed in an awkward, twisting motion that was from his own body putting force on the knee, not someone coming in from the outside.

I'm sure there's some evidence to show that knee braces can protect in some situations. But I think of it this way: would you rather be in a big truck that may provide better protection in a wreck, or a sports car that has better breaks and control and allows you to avoid some of those accidents altogether? There's not necessarily a right or wrong answer there. Some accidents are unavoidable. But some are. I'd personally rather have more control over my situation and have fewer wrecks.

 

can someone summarize this thread?

who is replacing him? signing someone or existing team member?

 

I think we’re just riding with sanbrailo.
He’s been playing pretty good in his small showing including against older brother Watt this week.
Wilson should be added to the roster soon for depth at least, no need to trade for anything.

 

So you basically quoted a few studies showing that OL have the highest rates for ACL tears and lowest return to play rates and yet the published studies did not specify that these ACLs had braces on them?

you’re helping make my point.

as for your anecdotal response of wearing a brace and losing some mobility, how mobile is Taylor Lewan right now? How mobile was Jack Conklin?

Non contact injuries you can’t control, but roll up injuries(OL)you can.

put these guys in braces, period.

 

Most likely to see Quessenberry called up is my guess.

 

I didn't help your point at all. They were all college OL. I haven't seen a college OL not wearing braces in decades. And if they're all wearing them, but still being injured, then your argument falls apart.

If you want to make an argument for wearing them to protect against other injuries, fine. There's a debate there.

But this article says unequivocally, "One injury a knee brace will not prevent is an ACL tear, which often happens without contact and comes from the rotation of the knee when cutting or changing directions. A knee brace would be used when rehabbing those injuries, to protect the graft used to reconstruct the ligament." Which is exactly what I said before.

So my point stands. If he'd worn the brace, Taylor would have still had his injury. And he would have been much more immobile, which would have made him a worse player, and put him in more dangerous situations.

I can't find a video of Conklin to see what happened on his, and I can't remember exactly, but I think it was non-contact as well.

Part of being safe is being confident. Some guys feel more confident with the brace on. Some don't. But if you force players to do something they don't feel comfortable with, you're going to make their play worse, make them think about the thing that annoys them, and not be able to focus on their job.

I'm going to trust the guy who's a professional athlete, being paid millions of dollars to take care of his body, to know what is right for himself.

 

I don't have access to the full article, but here's a brief from another scientific review of knee braces:

In short, college players get ACL injuries regardless of wearing a brace or not. So I think it's your turn, why don't you show me some conclusive, scientific proof showing that braces actually prevent injuries for college and NFL players.

 

J Rob should look into kicking the tires on Cordy Glenn, he's capable of playing both tackle positions. If he doesn't nail a starting job down he'd at least provide solid depth at LT and RT, I wouldn't count on Wilson this season.

 

I just wonder if Glenn’s blubbery backside is in any kind of football shape. We are hearing enough of that about Clowner.