BillsFanM.D.

Didn't miss it...just agreed with 'dave mcbride' about wanting to "like your players." Having said that I disagree with 'kelly' and concur with 'run the damn ball.' it's clear our other skill players progressed and willis went backwards (injuries aside). All this behind the same line. Bottom line is he didn't want to be here. He would have likely never excelled. Getting two first day picks and a throw in are a bonus.

Well said. i (and my two boys) are going to donate our McGahee jerseys to salvation army. There is no sense in taking a shot at guys on your way out the door. It makes you look like a child. "it was their fault." A real player challenges them in the locker room and raises their play/intensity/effort. A kitty name-calls on the way out. I sincerely hope he sucks there....though he will probably get his 1k/season for a few years before the Ravens are no longer capable of "playing to his satisfaction."

Who are you that you are so wise in the ways of science? Seriously...you're right.

Most - Jim Kelly Least - Jerry "the revolving door" Crafts

That was really the one quote that got me po'd. He essentially states he had no "hope" playing in Buffalo with current players. There was an interesting debate on this board recently about whether the pats were in decline. There is no such debate about Willis. JP and Lee are getting better. Willis is getting worse. He may have talent but the guy crawled up and died on us last year while the other two "young guns" got better. The only place his production increased last year is in the enviable category of stupid qoutes. Now he's on to bashing ex-teammates. I hope we kick the crap out of him.

what a way to start the day. Hilarious.

I think the dog ate it. (seriously...i was wondering the same thing).

bend over and take it like a man. that pretty much wraps that up.

A very solid B+ so far. Last years draft yielded not only "some good players" but perhaps a true foundation. If (and I realize it's a big IF) McCargo and Youbuty pan out he'll look like a sheer genius. We all need to come to grips that we are not going to be a big splash free agent team and we have to reload via the draft on a regular basis. We can't afford to whiff on many picks if the draft is our path to success. Marv got killed after the draft last year and perhaps he could have dealt down and still got his guys. In retrospect, he took a guy he felt could play and it worked. The rest is details whether you are for or against him. Whitner may have been taken too high for some but you can't argue that he has first round talent and appears well on his way to being, at the very least, an above average safety. If Marv hits on 5/7 (or so) picks per year he's doing much better than most. Here's hoping he keeps up the trend. The draft is such a crapshoot...we need some luck as well.

Much better with the link... thanks for the video!

...seems kind of odd timing given all the "love" they were giving their newest "hall of famer" a few weeks ago. Can't say I'll miss him. &&*%$# cowboy!!

that reminds me of Chucky getting burned up in Child's Play...just without the huge knife.

I'll go 5.

I agree and thanks.

Best show on TV but I'd never have the guts to say/do the stuff he does. He's pathologic....but hilarious.

As I said in the prior post, it may be time to reimage his knee. An additional MRI at this point is reasonable if the original was done at the time of his injury. Getting a third opinion is also appropriate if it's been five months and he's not improving. As far as getting a scope done, it can reveal findings not seen on MRI but you don't want to introduce more trauma (which is what surgery is) to an area unless you've exhausted every other means of diagnosis. An MRI might not be normal now even if it was months ago. He may have caused additional injury etc. lastly, it hurts to write it ...but sometimes after a knee injury things never completely return to normal. Your best bet is to get a third opinion and evaluate whether anything can or should be done. If you came to me with above story and his MRI was five months old, I'd re-image him. I'd also get a new ortho opinion; even if I completely trusted the first. That's my opinion. If his MRI is abnormal now, you know what is happening and what to do. If it is "normal" you need to decide whether a scope to have a "look see" is worth the risks of the procedure. P.S. To all those who are concerned that John is "seeking advice on a football board:" I was simply trying to give him basic info and answer his questions. I'm not suggesting he rely on info from someone his son has never seen and I never recommended treatment of any kind. Lighten up. It's no different than the 3000 questions a week I get from my personal friends, family, coworkers etc. I don't mind it then and I don't mind it now. It's just conversation. Not a medical evaluation and treatment. John, you can PM me if you have any other questions and I'd be happy to help you understand what results etc mean or if you don't understand what the docs told you.

Well it's certainly reassuring that two docs gave the same opinion. Being one, I can tell you that's not always the case. It really sounds like his MCL sprain has healed. If it weren't he'd still be having a lot of discomfort on the inner portion of the knee and not so much "under the kneecap." It may be that his injury coincided with him starting to have problems with the patellofemoral syndrome and now that's become the primary problem. As suggested, that's usually treated with PT/water therapy and strengthing the thigh muscles using a particular type of exercise for the knee. Rarely, they will do surgery to "fix" the kneecap so there is not so much room to slide around. I would be very resistant to letting a growing 15 yo do any kind of surgery on his knee unless there is a clear indication and it doesn't sound like you have it. Kids don't always "grow" symmetrically either. (think back when we all had big feet as growing kids) It may be that he's going through some changes that, with time, will correct themselves. Like I said, be patient. Reinforce with your son what a good thing it is that he didn't "blow out his knee" and need major surgery. That would have been a disaster for him. Lots of kids with blows to the side of the knee knock out the acl, mcl and tear the medial meniscus. I know that won't make him feel better but, honestly, it could be a lot worse. Don't blame yourself either. Like I said, kids "don't rest." He may have practiced with your permission but when you weren't looking he was goofing off with friends (horseplay etc) and doing the things that all 15 yo guys do. Lastly, ask the doctor a pointed question next visit....find out what exactly is causing his current pain and how best to fix it? The doc already has him in a treatment program but it sounds like your son needs more understanding of what's happening. Keep us updated and good luck.

Well, for the record, I am a doctor. Not ortho...not even surgery;so I would not consider myself an expert on an MD level. I practice in general adult medicine but I'll give you my best info. I'm a little confused as to what his diagnosis is. The knee has four basic ligaments... ACL, PCL, MCL and LCL. If his injury is an MCL sprain (no tear), this is rarely treated with anything other than rest. Even with tears, it is usually treated quite conservatively. The big concern with that type of injury in an athlete is additional cartilage tears that can occur with it. The MCL is on the inner side of the knee and is attatched to the medial meniscus. Imagine a support strap on the inner side of the knee (mcl) attatched to a cushion (medial meniscus) that fits between the "thigh bone and leg bone." The meniscus is the cartilage in the knee and consists of both medial and lateral parts. Just wanted to clarify as some have mentioned these as different terms. Cartilage and meniscus are the same. When the mcl is strained the medial meniscus is often injured as well. The last concern you mentioned is the growth plate. If that portion of the bone is injured he may have some concerns re: further growth. That's a huge if...and hard to predict. I'll leave that to the ortho. From what I can guess (and i stress the word guess) he should have healed an mcl strain by now if he has been faithful with rest. That's always a tough one for a kid who is athletic. make sure he's been honest with you. that's not a knock on your son as I sure as heck would have lied to my parents/coach etc to "get in the game." If he has a cartilage tear this generally has symptoms of the knee locking or significant pain with resistance such as lifting or running. If he has symptoms of instability (knee giving way) that generally points towards a ligament tear. An MRI answers these questions almost all the time. The only question then is whether it is treated surgically or conservatively. In some cases, however, they will go in arthroscopically to "look around" when the patient's symptoms are not explained by the MRI findings (or lack of). This also is the time to remove any loose particles of cartilage that may be present. As far as cartilage healing....that's not very likely. Cartilage has poor blood supply and it's ability to heal is very controversial. When you hear about athletes getting "microfracture surgery" the principle is to make small holes in the cartilage to promote blood flow. Some are firm believers; most are skeptical. In general, if the cartilage is severly torn, the offensive piece is removed. This obviously accelerates the development of arthritis over one's life but can often greatly improve symptoms in the short term. If the piece is a flap and not shredded it can be "tacked down" in it's original position. He may be have suffered direct trauma to the cartilage and bruised the underlying bone. This is called a bone bruise (aptly named). This can be a lingering injury with no real structural damage but hurts like heck. A bone bruise typically is visible on an MRI. You also mentioned pain directly under his kneecap. A lot of young athletes have significant patellar laxity (loose kneecap). This means his kneecap moves left and right more than average. Everyone's can be slid a bit in the relaxed position. Some moreso than others. Often those individuals will develop wear and tear changes under the kneecap because of the increased trauma that occurs in someone with this "loose" kneecap. This "disorder" is called patellofemoral syndrome. Usually this occurs as a chronic worsening problem rather than a sudden onset of pain so it is much less likely in your son's scenario. If it's been months since his last MRI, I might suggest you repeat it. He may have had a small cartilage tear that failed to show initially and his repeated attempts to start sports may have exacerbated it. Just a thought. Lastly, get a second opinion. Any doctor who is worth their salt would certainly encourage it. sometimes a fresh set of eyes is helpful and your son may be reassured by hearing some confirmation. Don't get too frustrated. Sometimes these things just linger and caution is the best way to proceed. Hope this helps.

a lot of folks here hope we draft him (self not included unless he miraculously slid to our second pick).....so this may have impact if proven true. That is, of course, if marv & company are as high on him as some.

That's a good thought too but I was referencing his aged weathered appearance. Keith Richards has a biological age that appears approximately twice his chronologic age. Eddie seems to be catching up. There's just way too many miles on those tires.

To borrow a line from Seinfeld..."he looks like an old catcher's mitt." dont' get me wrong, VH rocks... but he's starting to go a little Keith Richards on us.

Nicest "video" I've seen in a long time. The kiss at the end is priceless.

So True. Every time I watch that I think of John Lovitz (if I remember correctly) playing Michael Dukakis on Saturday Night Live. He was debating the elder Bush (Dana Carvey) and kept saying "I can't believe I'm losing to this guy." That game was such a collection of screw ups by us. Too bad Norwood takes all the heat.

They're replaying it again at 1:00am if you want to DVR.