' Thatrsquos a tough situation for anybody

I am certain it's millions of loyal fans shutter at that very thought.Unfortunately, that point is a lot closer than some want to believe. . Has this Hines Ward-Big Ben controversy-that-probably-isn’t-a-controversy got your head spinning Mine, too. Not only do I still not know what Ward was talking about when he decided to give an informative monologue on head trauma, but also I’m pretty sure Hines doesn't know either. Ward, who has no formal medical training, shared his musings about concussions without bothering to edit them Or put them in complete sentences. Or consider what the ramifications would be. Instead of remaining in his bald head, they came out of his mouth, in front of a national audience. He wanted to clear things up about his comments, which created a firestorm even before Bob Costas took his make-up off Take it away, Dr. Ward. What Hines said: “I could see some players or teammates questioning, like, it’s just a concussion.” What Hines meant: “Sure, at some point, some players or teammates could question someone getting a concussion But that doesn’t happen on the Steelers. He creates his very own hypothetical situation, which includes a hypothetical locker room He never once says this is happening in Pittsburgh Why Because it isn’t.

He was talking about something different, as he later clarified, about who has and has not played with a concussion. What Hines said: “I’ve played with a concussion before.” What Hines meant: “After laying out many unsuspecting defensive backs and linebackers with huge blocks, I’ve stayed in games despite being a little woozy or maybe not smiling for a few seconds here and there. But I’ve never been formally diagnosed with a concussion; I may have been embellishing a little there.” Again, no disrespect here, just rambling thoughts. Nobody’s calling anybody out, and there’s no outburst. What Hines said: “It’s almost like a 50-50 toss up in the locker room. Should he play Shouldn’t he play It’s really hard to say.” What Hines meant: “As to who has or has not played with a concussion, it’s probably 50-50 Ben’s a tough guy and I’m sure he wants to play. Costas looks like he’s loving it, too; I’m sure the same goes for Mark Madden. What Hines said: “Ben practiced all week He split time with Dennis Dixon. And then to find out that he's still having some headaches and not playing and it came down to the doctors didn't feel that they were going to clear him or not it's hard to say.” What Hines meant: “Ben practiced all week He split time with Dennis Dixon.

And then he had some headaches, but he really wanted to play. He even pleaded with Coach Tomlin at the last minute, but the doctors said 'no.' That’s a tough situation for anybody.” Now Ward is really starting to ramble, and it’s kind of understandable. He was as stunned as anyone to hear Ben wasn’t playing, and he really didn’t know what was going on. Really, he shouldn’t have been saying anything about such an internal matter. What Hines said: “Unless you're the person ... I've lied to a couple of doctors saying, 'I'm straight, I feel good' when I know that I'm not really straight. I don’t think guys really worry about the future when they’re playing currently in the NFL.” What Hines meant: “Well, Ben never puts himself above the team. We know if he was all right, he would play. Even after the doctors said he shouldn’t play, he still wanted to. You can’t play in this league without being physically and mentally tough. Guys generally have no regard for their future when they’re playing.” By this point, Ward has thoroughly confused everyone, so let’s see what he had to say after the game, when it was determined that his comments were about to cause a minor stir. What Hines said: “Finding out your starting quarterback was not playing until Saturday, it was shocking....