Before we get back to basketball and the Cavs (coming soon) … a thought on the Browns, who now have lost Ryan Tucker (broken bone in hip) and Daven Holly (serious knee injury) in offseason workouts. These injuries point out the ridiculous nature of the constant nature of the NFL. Teams never stop. There is little break. These offseason practices – that’s what they are, not 'OTAs' as the NFL would have us believe – are supposed to be non-contact. What they are are fullspeed practices without pads. Passing plays especially are run at fullspeed. So there is contact, with defensive linemen and offensive linemen pushing and grunting and defensive backs making plays on the ball and that kind of stuff. It’s not “contact” per se because there’s no tackling, but it’s fullspeed. It's virtually impossible to expect or ask players not to go fullspeed. It's just their nature. Which means the NFL need only look at itself regarding these injuries. It's a league that seems to think the more time is spent on something, the better it gets. So make 'em practice in the offseason. In fact, the opposite is often true. Spending more and more time banging the same head against the same wall eventually injures the head. Sean Jones went down for a season in a Butch Davis “OTA.” Now Holly, who tore ligaments and cartilage (according to the team web site), is lost for the season. Non-contact. These could be the proverbial "freak" injuries, but the Browns have lost two starters in non-contact drills. It just seems odd, like something is not right in Peoria.
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