Broncos hope to play hurt

[Randall]

URL: http://www.rockymountainnews.com/drmn/bron...4076724,00.html

Going to great pains

Broncos' Bailey, Anderson hope to play with injuries

 

By Lee Rasizer, Rocky Mountain News

September 13, 2005

 

ENGLEWOOD - It's the feel-good story of the summer, or at least the aftermath of a Week 1 that was nothing of the sort for the Denver Broncos.

 

Cornerback Champ Bailey and running back Mike Anderson still were experiencing discomfort one day after getting knocked out of the Broncos' opener because of injuries.

 

But both players said Monday the pain had dissipated.

 

Neither is remotely a sure thing to play Sunday in Denver's home opener against the San Diego Chargers (2:15 p.m., CBS 4). Bailey could miss one to two weeks because of a dislocated left shoulder; Anderson is day to day because of a rib-cartilage separation.

 

Still, both expressed confidence they'll at least give it a shot and, perhaps, even endure a couple from a thin needle.

 

"If I can walk, there's a 90 percent chance I'm going to be out there," said Bailey, who hasn't missed a game during his six-plus NFL seasons.

 

That kind of durability isn't the case with Anderson, and it's a key reason he's so primed to make a quick return.

 

He sat out the 2004 season because of torn left groin muscles but had worked his way back into the starting lineup before exiting a 34-10 loss against the Dolphins on the Broncos' fifth offensive snap in Miami.

 

"I'm tired of watching. I've watched enough," Anderson said. "If that's the case, I might as well buy season tickets to this team. I feel like I've been watching that long anyway."

 

Bailey's injury is considered the more serious problem, but the team was buoyed by the news after a magnetic resonance imaging exam that the cornerback suffered a dislocation, not a separation.

 

The ailments are markedly different.

 

A dislocation occurs when the top of the arm bone (humerus) loses contact with the shoulder blade (scapula). It essentially pops out of the joint and needs to be "reduced," or realigned in the socket. A separation is an injury to the ligament between the shoulder blade and collarbone.

 

Broncos coach Mike Shanahan, after consulting with athletic trainer Steve Antonopulos, said the medical staff initially feared Bailey suffered a separation, similar to what cornerback Lenny Walls incurred last year on three occasions before undergoing season-ending surgery.

 

As for Bailey's availability, Shanahan said "a lot has to do with pain and how he feels with the harness on later in the week."

 

One of the offshoots of a shoulder dislocation is instability, which occurs because of tears to the ligaments that support the shoulder and might make the shoulder prone to repeat dislocations.

 

"I'm vulnerable to it happening again," said Bailey, who was injured on the first play of the third quarter when he tackled Miami running back Ronnie Brown, then got his left arm pinned awkwardly underneath the rookie's body. "But anybody that knows me knows I'm going to do whatever I can to get out there."

 

The harness restricts movement and helps hold the shoulder joint in place.

 

"I'm sure it'll restrict me in some areas," Bailey said about the device. "But I don't think it's going to kill my game."

 

Bailey, who would be replaced by rookie Darrent Williams at left cornerback if he can't play, noted he nearly missed games on two occasions with the Washington Redskins, once because of a shoulder problem and another time because of an ankle issue.

 

Both decisions went to game time, but despite minimal practice those weeks, he kept alive a streak of starting that now is at 97 games.

 

"I don't want to mess this thing up any worse than it has to be, and if I can't do the things I want to do, then I won't go," he said. "But if I can do quite a few of the things I can do, then I will. I won't say I have to be totally 100 percent.

 

"I'm going to be in pain throughout the year anyway. So why not play through this if I can?"

 

Anderson had a similar mind-set. He said it comes down to "managing pain," although a pain-killing injection Sunday didn't provide the necessary relief for him to return.

 

It also will depend on whether he "can run and not have a hard time breathing in and out."

 

Former Broncos tight end Shannon Sharpe had a similar injury during a 2003 game against the Chicago Bears and was able to play at Oakland the next week.

 

The injury appeared to occur when he was tackled by Dolphins linebacker Channing Crowder and Junior Seau hit him with his helmet while lying on the pile at the end of the run. He finished with 5 yards on four carries for a run offense that produced 70 yards on 20 carries.

 

"If these guys are hurt, they'll play," Shanahan said of the beleaguered stars. "If they're injured, they can't play. . . . But we'll evaluate that later in the week and find out where they're at."

[rocknrobn26]

I had a catilage separation once. they say it's almost worse than a broken rib. I had an elastic band wrapped around my lower thorax that helped, but man...... I was driving and I had to sneeze. Chit, I thought I was going to blackout from the pain and lost sight of the road for a couple of seconds ! Coughs were also fun. It took me about 4 weeks before I could breathe normally, and 2 months later I took off the band.

 

I have Anderson and have to watch this closely.