01-18-2017, 10:18 AM
(01-18-2017, 01:24 AM)oncemoreuntothejimbreech Wrote: Well, that's just a guess on your part. You have no idea if he will deal with "this" throughout his career because you don't even know what "this" is.
Less than 5% of people with ankle sprains develop chronic instability of the ankle joint. Of that 5%, most get better without surgery. The ones who do get surgery are people like Eifert. Eifert and his doctor chose the conservative treatment route and after 3-4 months when there was still instability they opted for the surgical route. Why don't you complain about Eifert's "chronic ankles"? Because you don't know what you're talking about.
If Fournette has chronic ankle instability he most likely would have already undergone surgery to get a jump start on the rehab for next season. But, it is possible someone (maybe an agent) advised him not to get surgery until after the draft so he doesn't hurt his draft stock. Fournette will get multiple physicals by multiple teams at the combine and I'm sure a MRI at a minimum. If Fournette does have ankle instability, it would be damn near impossible for them not to catch it. (According to one study, the physical exam is 96% sensitive and 84% specific.) Therefore, if Fournette doesn't have surgery after the combine and isn't flagged as a medical recheck then he doesn't have "chronic" ankles. If he does have surgery, it will most likely be the same surgery as Eifert's. At which point, not even the surgeon could predict if the ankle instability will or won't be chronic.
Wasn't directed at me, but I'll jump in. There are multiple "sources" (take them for what they are worth) who have said his ankle issue is going to be a chronic issue. We don't complain about Eiffert because A. we already have him, so not much we can do the pick is spent B. He has NFL production showing that when he can get on the field his production is worth the injury risk (similar to Gronk, Graham, etc).
We will see if he gets flagged at the combine, but as I said that is the rumor from multiple places. Some teams may flag him others may not, this came up with Lattimore a few years back some thought he'd never play again some thought he'd heal not all teams have the same willingness to take risk with injuries. He was supposed to sit out most the back end of the season to not aggravate it, but after the scuffle at Florida he ended up going back to the locker room and getting dressed. It sounds like he could be a candidate for year one ankle surgery meaning if you take him you may be taking him with a red shirt build in.
My personal take is I am not spending a top 10 pick on a guy who may be coming in as damaged goods. I think more interesting that combine flags or rumors will be if you start see him slipping. If he slips down the boards I think we will know the answer on how teams feel about the ankle.
