Quote:
Originally Posted by Mattyk
This doesn't sound too good:
One NFL medical person -- don't want to be too specific -- told me Sunday that the injury that is apparently plaguing fired Cincinnati wideout Antonio Bryant could be Chondral Defect of the knee. "If you're not looking for it, you won't find it,'' this official said. "It's a long-term knee problem that won't go away.'' The ailment refers to a complicated cartilage injury to the knee. Whether that's the exact injury plaguing Bryant or not, it's incredible that a team investigating a free-agent wide receiver who missed most of 2009 with a knee problem would have passed him on the physical this year, handed him a four-year, $28 million contract, and then watched as he practiced one time all summer in training camp before cutting him Sunday.
I'm stunned the Bengals passed Bryant on his physical, then handed him $7.85 million in guarantees. Stunned. Whether the Bengals have good players in reserve at wide receiver -- they do -- is not the point. Wasting millions on a player clearly not ready to play is.
In the past two years, the Bengals have signed two veteran receivers to deals averaging $7 million a year. Laveranues Coles gave them a year. Antonio Bryant didn't make it out of his first August with the team. Good thing they've got the draft, because Jermaine Gresham (first round) should be an impact tight end for them and Jordan Shipley (third round) is set to be a solid slot guy. And they got Terrell Owens cheap. He'll probably start alongside Chad Ochocinco. I just can't figure out why they blew it two years in a row on receivers no other teams were very interested in.
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Not only that but they never in a billion trillion years should have let him practice. If they had any doubts at all about his knee then they had to hold him out. Because they let him practice they punted the chance to PUP him. Maybe the worst health related decision ever. Their doctors ought to be canned for letting it happen. Along with anyone else who should have known better.
Plus they're going to have to pay him his salary. No way around it...they owe him his salary per the CBA.