On Saturday, we pointed out a tweet from Lions quarterback Matthew Stafford that, given the lockout blackout in communication between players and coaches, could have been intended to serve as a message to his coaches regarding the status of his shoulder.
Specifically, Stafford said that he is “feeling good” after “throwing a lot” on Friday.
And there’s nothing wrong with Stafford doing that. It’s smart. It’s prudent.
But Stafford felt compelled to explain on Sunday that he didn’t post the message for the benefit of the coaches.
“Didn’t get twitter to let coaches kno how I’m doin...they know,” Stafford said, again via Twitter. “Just want our fans to know how [we’re] doing.”
Key words: “They know.”
How do “they know”? The lockout is 16 days old. The Lions knew how he was doing as of March 11. Under the terms of the lockout, the Lions currently should be completely in the dark.
So in his effort to explain away something that he had every right to do, Stafford may have said too much.
UPDATE: As to those of you who are under the impression that some type of contact regarding rehab efforts is permitted, consider these quotes from Lions defensive end Kyle Vanden Bosch, via Howard Balzer of The Sports Xchange. “There will be no direct communication with the coaches or even trainers,” Vanden Bosch said. “As far as me, I don’t have rehab. That’s all behind me. But other guys who are in active rehab, I think trainers right now are trying to get information about where they’ll be rehabbing, what facilities they’ll be at; just making sure they’re comfortable with the guy’s plan during the offseason. But [during a lockout] the trainers can’t directly contact players and find out where they’re at and how their rehab’s coming and how they’re progressing. Players are going to have to do a good job of staying on top of it and making sure they’re doing the right things because the team can’t monitor what they’re doing.”
SECOND UPDATE: Lions coach Jim Schwartz said last week that teams can keep tabs on players. “Our trainers are in communication with -- not the players -- but the people who are doing their rehab,’' Schwartz said, per Tom Kowalski of mlive.com. “I’m not sure exactly how often they’re in touch, but I get reports on a fairly consistent basis. That doesn’t mean I get a report every time somebody talks to a guy or something like that. We can’t supervise, but we can communicate with the supervisors.’'