Ben Roethlisberger out due to concussion, Dennis Dixon in
With QB Ben Roethlisberger sidelined by a concussion for at least one game (and backup Charlie Batch out for at least several weeks with a broken wrist), third-string QB Dennis Dixon (Oregon) will make his first NFL start Sunday night against the Baltimore Ravens. This late development leaves Pittsburgh at a major disadvantage at the quarterback position, as the Ravens feature rising star Joe Flacco, one of the most impressive young QB’s in the game.
Meanwhile, it’s scary to think that Big Ben is still symptomatic after his latest concussion. It’s even scarier to contemplate the possibility that his career might end prematurely due to concussions. But at least the Steelers seem to be erring on the side of caution, as opposed to 2006, when he was permitted to play in a game at Oakland just a week after absorbing a crushing hit (and suffering a concussion) in a game at Atlanta. Roethlisberger didn’t even look back-to-normal during that Oct. 2006 game against the Raiders, and to this day it remains his worst performance as a pro.
However, there may be a silver lining to having Big Ben out of the lineup, as the Steelers will be forced to go back to basics on offense. And if the team experiences some success with a run-oriented game plan, perhaps head coach Mike Tomlin and offensive coordinator Bruce Arians will stick with a more conservative approach even after Roethlisberger returns to the lineup. It would be the prudent thing to do, as Roethlisberger can’t continue to absorb the punishment he’s absorbing and expect to play until his current contract expires after another six seasons. (I’ve examined this issue before in Time for Big Ben to sit, a post in which I addressed the Steelers’ history of allowing Roethlisberger to come back too soon from injuries.)
Jason is editor and co-founder of Failure magazine.
1.If you watch the game tape it’s obvious, Vollmer was wearing a $2 boil and bite mouth guard hanging of his cage.
The week prior, it appeared Neal had no mouth guard at all, like most players.
On field prevention is the only way, helmets have very high testing standards by independent bodies.
Mouth guards on the other hand have no oversight, Cantu has stated, concussions do occur from blows to the chin when the Temporal Mandibular joint contacts the skull base at the temporal medail area of the frontal lobe. He also has stated he would like to see some good mouth guard research. It’s already done:
http://www.mahercorlabs.com/pdf/Dental_Trauma…
CTE in this area is a concern, limiting these forces may be the key to protecting High School and youth athletes. A protocol used by the N.E. Patriots idenfities markers that make this energy tranfer more likely. Correcting these biological defects has been found in research to be a means of reducing susceptibility and severity of MTBI due to blows to the chin and chin strap forces.
Many NFL and NHL players are already using this protocol.
http://www.sportingnews.com/blog/the_sporting…
I think you gotta give Big Ben and the Steelers credit for being wise about a head injury.