Chargers' Merriman will forgo surgery, play with knee injury

Tiger isn't on a team though. His decision impacts him only. Merriman could possibly wreck his career and that would have a pretty big impact on his team.

Again, the idea that he is being selfish here is crazy to me. It boggles my mind. But I guess I just disagree with everybody.

Anyway, from what I can gather in this article it seems like the team is cool with him playing, for obvious reasons.

ESPN - Chargers' Merriman will forgo surgery, play with knee injury - NFL (http://sports.espn.go.com/nfl/news/story?id=3556123)

Again, the idea that he is being selfish here is crazy to me. It boggles my mind. But I guess I just disagree with everybody.

Anyway, from what I can gather in this article it seems like the team is cool with him playing, for obvious reasons.

ESPN - Chargers' Merriman will forgo surgery, play with knee injury - NFL (http://sports.espn.go.com/nfl/news/story?id=3556123)

In the long run his decision to play could have a pretty big impact on the team if he injures himself to the point where his career is in jeopardy, so in that right yeah I think he's being selfish. You really can't see that?

Do you think the risk vs. reward is worth it?

i don't understand why he thinks he should do this? he obviously will not be at his best. and could further damage his knee, to the point of his career being over

I respect his committment to the team...apparently they think its a do it this year or we rebuild a bit. But it is a dumbfounding decision. LAVAR talk some sense into your boy!!!!
Also...ummmi dont really get the tiger parallel. Hes bad ass at swinging clubs...but the day tiger gets on the field in a helmet and pads...ill respect him as an "athlete" or merrimans standing

I really don't think we have enough medical information on this case to really know if Merriman is a dead man walking out there.

The doctors are recommending him to shut it down, or at least that's what's been reported. But maybe they aren't recommending him to do so because they think his career is in danger. Maybe they just think that he might compromise his effectiveness for this season if he does play. That's possible I think.

If that's the reason, why not give it a try? If the alternative to having surgery is to play, and possibly risk a midseason injury and then...he has to have surgery, the only thing that changes is the timetable for his return...which is essentially offset by the time he's putting in now.

I think Merriman is doing the right thing. If the team feels his effectiveness is compromised, the ball is in their court to get him on IR so that they can get a more effective, healthier player in there.

He's had 4 independent doctors that have recommended surgery.

SignOnSanDiego.com > San Diego Chargers -- Merriman opts to play (http://www.signonsandiego.com/sports/chargers/20080828-9999-1s28chargers.html)

He's had 4 independent doctors that have recommended surgery.

SignOnSanDiego.com > San Diego Chargers -- Merriman opts to play (http://www.signonsandiego.com/sports/chargers/20080828-9999-1s28chargers.html)Aren't the doctors always going to error on the side of caution? You never want to be the guy who told Merriman to go for it, only to have him suffer a season ending injury.

The team doctors still have to clear him to play. I'm assuming they have already...you know when the injury was first discovered. So obviously the team doctors feel it's playable.

I think the big point here is that "erroring on the side of caution" means recommending the surgery, and the worst possible scenario if he plays is only a more complicated surgery. I don't think that it's quite as risky as it seems on the outside to us.

When you have two ligaments tears you don't need a doctor to tell you it's not a good thing. It's given you should take care of them.

Aren't the doctors always going to error on the side of caution?

The team doctors still have to clear him to play. I'm assuming they have already...you know when the injury was first discovered. So obviously the team doctors feel it's playable.

I think the big point here is that "erroring on the side of caution" means recommending the surgery, and the worst possible scenario if he plays is only a more complicated surgery. I don't think that it's quite as risky as it seems on the outside.

Of course the team doctors are going to lean more towards letting him play. I'd value an independent opinion much more than someone with a vested interest.

Did you read this article? Not only could he complicate things by injuring it further, but there is a chance of it potentially being career threatening.

Merriman has been told he is better off having the surgery now than waiting. He has been advised he can make the injury worse by playing, that he can eventually wear out the cartilage in his knee by playing in this state. That would, without a doubt, threaten his career.

I work closely with nurses at my job and they've all told me the same thing. Two damaged ligaments severely compromises the overall stability of the knee. And in a sport that requires drastic stopping and starting, his chance of injuring the knee further is greatly increased.

When you have two ligaments tears you don't need a doctor to tell you it's not a good thing. It's given you should take care of them.

That's what amazes me about the people who don't seem to think this is a big deal. When do we ever hear about someone attempting to play an entire season with 2 damaged ligaments? It's simple... 2 torn ligaments = need for surgery. Can you play on it? Sure. Is it a wise thing to do? Probably not.