APCowboys quarterback Tony Romo may be a hero for leading his team to victory despite suffering a fractured rib and collapsed lung on Sunday. But one former NFL quarterback says the Cowboys’ medical staff is far from heroic.
In fact, Boomer Esiason is calling on NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell to investigate why the Cowboys cleared Romo to play with a seemingly serious injury.
“What the hell are the Cowboys’ doctors doing? Are you allowed to play with a punctured lung, a collapsed lung, broken ribs? Is that what the NFL is now? Or do we actually care about the players? Or is it all just lip service? I think Roger Goodell has got to look at that particular situation very seriously,” Esiason told USA Today.
Esiason sees hypocrisy in the NFL glorifying players like Romo toughing out injuries and then failing to take care of retired players who live with the consequences of such injuries.
“These are the injuries that sustain,” Esiason said. “They last with you. They pop up. Then you have to go before some arbitration board to say you need money, because you need rehabilitation and you need help, and you can’t get it, because they’re saying it probably happened after you played. I mean, it’s asinine.”
There’s also hypocrisy in the league changing rules in an effort to keep the game safe while simultaneously allowing team doctors to give players painkillers to get them through games when they’ve already been hurt.
“I hear all this lip service about how we have to take care of the players,” Esiason said. “We have to move the kickoff up, we have to limit the amount of high-speed collisions, we can’t hit the QB any more. And yet we have a guy who has two cracked ribs, a punctured lung, and we’re going to shoot him up with a numbing agent and put him back in the game? There’s something inherently wrong with that.”
Esiason raises good points. After Sunday’s game, no one can question Tony Romo’s toughness. But questions remain about the Cowboys’ medical staff’s competence.
Channel Finder
They didn’t know his lung was punctured until after the game. Players play with broken/cracked ribs all the time. Should anyone that shows up on the injury report be out for safety? Milton Esiason is an idiot.
And the NFL’s response is “……………………………………………………………………………………………………………………..” Can you hear the dead silence? Powerful message delivered by Esiason.
Don’t get so worked up Boomer. It’s only Romo.
For the player’s sake.
This whole thing is ridiculous. It’s grown men playing football. Let them make grown up choices and play football the way it was meant to be played
This whole thing is totally comical. Jerry Jones and the Cowboys have been “marketing” Romo’s injuries all week, saying in effect, “Look how tough our glorious leader is! Fighting through all these horrific injuries to lead our valiant ‘Boys into battle! All hail our heroic and oh-so-manly leader, Tony Romo!”
They’re grown men but also YOUNG grown men. Machismo makes us do some stupid things sometimes.
I’m going to go out on a limb and guess that Romo’s doctors have a better idea about what they are doing, with the information that they have at the time . . . than a commentator, who thinks he knows something based on what information is told to the media.
And yes . . . it is the doctors jobs to get the players back on the field ASAP . . . but I’m doubting they are trying to put their franchise guy in a position to get himself killed. (teed up someone for some o-line jokes there). That doesn’t benefit the team, and they are well aware of that.
That’s a really good point. One I hadn’t thought about…
You’ve got one team faking injuries because they can’t handle the other team’s no huddle offense and we want them punished. We have another team that we want to punish because their guy tries to play through injuries. We have former players suing the league over injuries. Current players are griping about rules that try to make the game safer, while at the same time negotiating to have contact in practice limited. NONE of this makes sense!! This has become a snap-shot of America…point fingers at everybody else, somebody owes me something, and I’ll sue to get it. Can we STOP THE MADNESS??!!!! Please?
Investigate the Eagles medical staff too.
Ball now in your court, Goodell. Oh, never mind. Esiason served an ace. (unreturnable)
So why are you guys not posting my comments all of a sudden? The last post I made was entirely relevant to this thread.
I agree with Boomer Esiason. The doctors and trainers absolutely should be investigated.
If Romo in fact had a puctured lung they had no business letting him back out on the field.
If in fact he was having trouble speaking so his teammates could hear him the docs and trainers should have caught on that something was wrong.
When the body sustains an injury such as a tear or puncture the natural response is for the body to form a clot to stop bleeding or air leaking that would occur.
The danger lies in sending him back out there where he could have been hit like that again.
Another hit like that had the potential to dislodge the clot which then could have traveled from his lung to his heart which can be and often is fatal.
Instead of using their better judgement and caring for his injury they shot him up with pain killers and put him back in the game.
First everyone complains that the NFL is becoming a “soft” league because the are trying to clean up the long-term neurological effects of big hits to the head. Then, a guy comes back into a game with a broken bone, Esiason makes an asinine point about the NFL not caring about safety, and everyone agrees with this? I must be missing something.
There are two main problems here:
1. The medical staff held Romo out and didn’t let him come back in until they were satisfied he could play. And guess what? They were right. Romo played without incident. But we should investigate a medical team because Dr. Esiason thinks it was the wrong decision? Did he have a moneyline bet on the ‘Skins?
2. His point about “these are the types of injuries that sustain [sic]” is absolute nonsense. No, Boomer. Ribs heal. Brains don’t. The injuries that result from kill shots to the head, which all of you tough guys think is a part of “real football”, are the ones that stay with guys for their entire lives. This is a complete attention grab by Boomer, and honestly I don’t even see where he is coming from.
This shows a lack of regard for his personal health and safety. Absolutely these guys should be investigated. There was a very real danger to Romo.
Just a missed point here….romo’s “heroic” comeback….was against the 49rs. A blind Tony romo prolly could’ve led that comeback..
Before half time the injury was causing him to miss his throws.
After half time, the painkillers enabled him to play well.
So clearly the drugs he took improved his performance.
Why are they allowed within the NFL rules?
HGH’s primary purpose is to recover faster from injuries. HGH is banned.
Painkillers take away some of the negative conequences of injuries.
Again, why are they allowed?
Sounds like Boomer’s opponent in fantasy football is a Romo owner.
San Diego’s team physician: California state prosecutors have filed a complaint with the medical board against David Chao, MD, team physician for the San Diego Chargers, for the alleged misuse of drugs or alcohol and perjury on a professional application form, according to a North County Times report. Dr. Chao was already under federal investigation on suspicion of overwriting prescriptions to himself after it was found that he wrote 108 prescriptions for himself or “inanimate entities.” The new complaint recently filed with the board adds the misuse of drugs or alcohol and perjury.
Doogie Esiason missed that one I guess.
if that were tom brady wed be hearing about it for weeks but it was tony so let’s not credit him and only ask why he was on the field in the first place…. its called deniel
Or……. Romo was indeed not that hurt and jones wanted to put a spark under all lousy cowboy fans….. Yea, I think that about nails it. Whole organization smells of idiots. Sorry Dallas but ur only team worth a crap is the mavs.
Wow … Go Esiason!
Your day will come, boys.
What Boomer says is true, but this has been going on forever and I really doubt if much will ever change. Youth and machismo is one factor but I have a suspicion that millions and millions of dollars enters the equation. Ya think?
That was fun
Messin’ with Moderators …
A group or just one?
Folks think that’s about Cowboys LOL
Can I call you Sasquatch?
Are you laughing or serious, Sasquatch?
I’m really a very nice person.
anyone got an update on Romo? Havent heard much this week
Sasquatch, I think humor’s dead in Dallas.
Moderators are people, too.
Boomer, since you never won anything, no one will listen – you’ll always be a loser…if Aikman or Staubach said something, different story.
Aw, someone likes me
Folks, the story is Sasquatch caps me about 10 words.
Oarangecrush, you say that the Cowboys organization “smells of idiots” but you can’t even spell ‘orange’. Hmmm… I guess it takes one to know one, eh?
Punishment for an unfortunate penis insult to moderators.
Which I only made ’cause they capped my posts
After being misled by a controlling squirt who hates commenters.
If the injuries were truly as serious as the PR dept. claimed then the medical staff was obvious at fault. But more than likely it was more of the hairline fracture variety rather than actual broken ribs, and the lung was probably more bruised than actually punctured or collapsed. Jerry Jones certainly has every incentive to try to repair Romo’s widely perceived declining reputations however undeserved.
Sasquatch, squirt’s bully tactics or not, I won’t heel to.
I love the smell of thumbs down in the evening.
What everyone is not seeing or thinking about is right in front of your eyes!! I played the game for many years myself and broke a few ribs here and there and when they give you pain killing shots to numb the area so you can play there is a very real chance of them puncturing the lung themselves with the needle they are using to numb the area!! Did the Dr’s accidentally cause the puncture in the lung while giving Romo the pain killing shots for the ribs?? very real possibility guys!! …just a thought!!
“North Dallas 40″ – 2
savannahrose44 -Couldn’t you say all of that in just ONE post?
Some of the comments seem to come from people who would have given the thumbs down in the Roman Colleseum so the victor would kill the injured gladiator. Football is a tough enough sport ant the chance for serious injury is always there – but when a player is shot up in this kind of condition and sent back onto the field, that risk increases ten fold.
I guess it’s easy to sit there eating a hot dog and drinking a beer and yelling for an injured player to get back on the field for your enjoyment.
Tony Romo’s toughness, or his stupidity, or maybe his fear that if you give up your job to an injury you may never get back on the field.
Boomer put his finger on it. It’s either the docs did a crappy job and the NFL should look into it… or Jerry is writing the Legend of Tony Romo – to get the media off his back. More likely there wasn’t really a punctured lung there. But hey, it’s Dallas. All hype.
Cowboys haven’t been relevant since… Atlanta hosted the Olympics.
Like I said. . . gotta dump this commissioner – he’ bad for the game!
I cant believe I am about to say this… Esiason is dead on.
slick3 says:
Sep 24, 2011 1:22 AM
savannahrose44 -Couldn’t you say all of that in just ONE post?
I would have loved to have said it in one post, but they seem to think my posts are too long…
Romo’s not a wus like boomer was.Boomer came out of games with a hangnail!