Backup center discussion

[Schneed10]

Originally Posted by Ade Jimoh Fan Club

Please note in the official warpath records that this is the first time I have ever disagreed with the very astute Schneedster.

However, I would argue that coming off an injury-ravaged year makes us MORE probable to have another one, since injuries are known to have set-backs and/or cause new injuries to occur.

It's like once you have heat-stroke, you're exponentially more likely to have it again. Once you're injured, you've very likely to be injured again.

By my math, the odds are 72.9% that we'll not have an injury-filled year. My cousin Vinny the Clam from Vegas confirmed this to be accurate.

I'm not happy about it, but the numbers don't lie.

Yeah you're actually correct about this, because my argument is purely academic and mathematic in nature. It assumes that the onset of injury is entirely random. This of course is not true, as players like Rocky McIntosh who have degenerative knee conditions are certainly more susceptible to injury. So yeah, some lines are going to be more injury-prone than others.

But we're talking about the Redskins here, all of whom have shown an ability to play through a lot of pain and have been largely injury-free. I would argue that Jansen's two devastating injuries (achilles, then the ankle last year) were both freakish in nature and are in no way indicative of an injury trend. Last year, someone flat out rolled up on his ankle and turned it 90 degrees sideways, that would have broken even the most bionic of ankles. I can't recall RT ever having a triceps problem before last season, and I can't recall him missing much time for us before that. Rabach and Samuels have been on the field a ton the last few years.

So in my football opinion, I think the Skins have a decent chance at staying healthy this year, because by and large I think they're very durable. Broken bones tend to heal stronger than they were before a break, good news for Jansen. And RT has more than enough time to deal with the triceps. But from a purely academic standpoint, we're no more or less likely to stay healthy because of last year's debacle. Last year has nothing to do with this year from a mathematical standpoint, and from a football/medical standpoint, I think the guys are healed up enough to get back to being their durable selves.