UK_Seahawk":1fo4eef3 said:
If the rumours about him ignoring Seahawks medical advice which led to him having a repeat injury are true then it seems unlikely if he will remain with the Seahawks especially if he ignored the advice once again.
Even if not true I think he's done, too many bridges burned in all honesty.
This one is overblown.
Tibia fractures can be dealt with by either healing naturally, or set with intermedulliary nail. There are benefits/reasons to go either way. Alex Smith isn't the only player who has had to deal with infections in a surgical site. These risks are real and at worst can result in loss of the leg. And they have resulted in players losing their careers due to surgical complication.
Seattle wanted to insert a nail. This has benefits and drawbacks. Earl didn't want to incur the additional risk of a nail (added risk of bone infection).
To heal a tibia, it requires a lengthy period where one can't put weight on a leg. For most of us, staying off a leg entirely for 10+ weeks is unsustainable. We don't have two and a half months where we can be invalid in most of our daily lives. And certainly in our professional lives.
For a football player, that isn't necessarily the case. Earl injured his leg during the season. Meaning he could afford to stay off his feet for the remainder of the season, and be in a position to put weight on his leg about the time of the start of free agency. Certainly be able to do light work in the offseason with the expectation to be ready before training camp expired. Time was not a barrier to opting for natural healing.
Surgical repair with a nail isn't necessarily a better option. It is for normal folks who generally need to be back to work within a week or so of surgery. Inserting a nail means one can and should get on their feet within a day or so of surgery.
Risk of reinjuring a break like that is generally low for either case. The fact that Earl played some 20 games in between breaks (including all of the stress of two training camps in between) suggests that Earl's recurrence was more of a freak thing.
That's changed now that he's had two breaks. Bones don't heal exactly as before and his risk for a new break is now heightened.
While I/we don't know the specifics of Earl's case. Both treatment options are usually considered viable for a tibia fracture.
I'd also add, that there is a real and demonstrated history of team physicians succumbing to serving two masters. The team that employs them and their patients. Often times the needs of each conflict with one another. Just because team doctors suggest one course of treatment doesn't mean that's the one that serves the players' interests. There is a natural conflict there and doctors are human too. They can, do and have superceded team interests over player health interests.
In this particular case, I neither begrudge Earl's decision to seek outside opinion, nor taking that opinion. Even not knowing the specifics of his case -- if Earl decided that natural healing was the best route even if it legitimately raised risk of recurrence -- then that was his decision alone to make. And it was up to the team to accept the decision.
