Stafford…Can We Now Fess Up a Little Bit? By Denny McLain

by In Play! Magazine on Nov 26, 2009 6:09 PM EST

Let me start off by first saying this. Folks, amateur or professional athletes don’t play games when they are "really hurt."

I personally know what it is like to play hurt. I took dozens of injections in my right arm for several years after suffering a torn rotator cuff and was told that the steroids, “Pain pills,” anti-inflammation drugs and injections that we were being fed to me were actually “healing drugs” and that they were perfectly safe.

We weren’t allowed to have real agents back then to protect us.

Guess what, while I was taking the steroids and the many pain injections I was doing irreparable damage to my right arm and after three or four years of injections, I was out of the game. In fact, as of this date, I can barely hold my arm straight out from my shoulder.

If you have a "Real separated shoulder" you don’t risk your career, and certainly the Lions would not risk Stafford’s career if his shoulder was really "separated". Let’s really be serious.

Leaving Stafford in this game if really hurt was risking $60 million dollars for the Lions, and risking the career of Stafford, so let’s quit the hero, "Win one for the Gipper" stuff. READ ARTICLE

This is a FanPost and does not necessarily reflect the views of Pride of Detroit or its writers. FanPosts are valued expressions of opinion by passionate and knowledgeable fans.

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I wasn't even going to respond to this

But I really hope you weren’t looking for more readers or publicity by posting that here.

I can’t speak for anyone else, but we as Lions fans are all too aware of the limits of our quarterback. I personally think your article is pretty baseless, and the fact that you’d post it here after the loss today is pretty classless. I didn’t bother looking further into your site, but judging by your user picture, you write about Detroit possibly.

After last week, it was the popular sentiment that we were just happy to be on the long end of the ‘getting screwed at the last second’ stick. Our quarterback led us to a victory for once. A lot of people were happy for the Lions and us fans, and probably an equal amount looked to smash the small, albeit meaningful win as ‘you won against the Browns’.

I HIGHLY doubt anyone’s said that Stafford is going to be or is Peyton Manning or any other past present or future hall of famer. We speak about Staff with a guarded optimism, and I really don’t think your article was insightful or offered any sort of a point of view that we as Lions fans are going to agree with.

I guess, since I’m half drunk and hurt from watching the game earlier, my point is you’re in the wrong place with that drivel. Move along.

by Nate D. on Nov 26, 2009 6:32 PM EST reply actions 1 recs

He's spamming his site without actually "spamming" it......

Not only do I agree with you here Nate (this article is baseless and classless), but also I say bullshit. LOTS of professional athletes play injured EVERY week!

If he had an injury that required surgery, then I would agree……he would not be playing. However, a separated shoulder is a very painful injury, whether it is serious or not. Mr. Author, have you ever sprained your shoulder? Dislocated a joint? Probably not. If you have, then you should know that it is very painful and very sore for weeks after the injury. The fact that this 21 year old kid came into this game 4 days after such an injury IS ABSOLUTELY HEROIC!

Like Nate said…..if you posted this crap here and expected a positive response, you came to the wrong place. Most of us here think that it is amazing that #9 even put on his uniform for this game. If we want to think of him as tough and heroic, then who are you to criticize or tell us what to say and not say. I got something to tell you…..since two can play this game…..go look in the mirror and tell yourself to shut up.

by KDawg on Nov 26, 2009 8:55 PM EST up reply actions

AMEN Brother!

If he wasn’t hurt, he should win an emmy for the acting job on the field. Whenever I saw his face he was in obvious pain and was really protecting the left shoulder.
Like Nate and Dawg said, you are barking up the wrong tree here dude. Unless you have some solid proof the injury is fake, take a hike.

by Lead Hunter on Nov 27, 2009 5:04 PM EST up reply actions

Not to mention.....

If in fact this author is the REAL Denny McClain……he should be well aware that being a professional pitcher, pitching a baseball, and playing QB for a professional football team are two completely different things. The REAL Denny McClain was amazing…..the only man still alive that ever won more than 30 games as a professional baseball pitcher. He is definitely entitled to his opinion, but whoever thought it a good idea to post that crap here was sadly mistaken.

by KDawg on Nov 27, 2009 5:35 PM EST up reply actions

This Is Dumb

Why even put this on here……I dont get it?

by BennieBladesFan on Nov 26, 2009 8:27 PM EST reply actions

Some people

Just like kicking a team when they are down. I almost want to talk shit as well but as you all know,didn’t want Staff to play this year anyways. With that said what he did today can be looked on 2 different ways. 1 very gutzzy and admirable thats what I am going with today. 2. If he was hurt as bad as we all think he is, he and the coaching staff should of sat him to give the rest of the team the best oppertunity to win today. The D played well enough to win today but when your O-fence can’t stay on the field for more than 7 plays at a time the best D will wilt eventually.

by davis0169 on Nov 26, 2009 9:50 PM EST up reply actions

Out of bounds . . .

This is one really strange, misguided, unintelligent rant that is completely out of bounds. For the first time in years, the Lions have a strong young nucleus of talent in impact positions that fans can (and should!) support with some very serious enthusiasm. There couldn’t be a more appropriate response from a true fan than getting real damn excited about the guts, leadership and fortitude Stafford showed last Sunday. It was a big time moment for the young man, and that is just the way it is. Does it guarantee future greatness? No, but it damn sure is more consistent with that potential outcome than with one that sees our QB fade into anonymity as an abject failure. I am extremely excited about Stafford’s potential and am enjoying watching him develop at this level. No one argues that the collective talent on this team isn’t weak, but I do not understand the logic of criticizing loyal fans who focus on the positives and on the potential of this talented QB. Denny, I may be wrong, but I get the impression your the type of fella that takes his ball and goes home if things aren’t just so or folks disagree with you – I hope that is the case, because that shit article you wrote has no place here. Let fans be fans – we’ll decide if Stafford is not our guy at a more appropriate point in time (which certainly would not be during his rookie year with limited talent around him) and w/o your less than insightful assistance.

And regarding your rambling injury train of thought – well, I didn’t understand what the hell you were even trying to communicate – but don’t feel obligated to try to clarify that gibberish further. The kids banged up, he’s trying to play through it and if that’s not possible, healthy or productive the medical staff or the coaching staff will step in and put him on the sidelines. No matter how you slice it, you can come to no other conclusion after watching the last 2 games than that the kid is pretty tough and determined – probably to a fault. Not a bad character trait, fella.

by deacon93 on Nov 26, 2009 10:14 PM EST reply actions

Amen Deacon

And for the record, I doubt that the real Denny McClain wrote that article……The former Detroit Tigers ace from 1963-1970. If a 65 year old man wrote that article, I would be shocked. No, I think this was written by a much younger man who was speaking as Denny McClain.

by KDawg on Nov 26, 2009 11:09 PM EST up reply actions

Congratulations...you've successfully proven that you are a....

GO LIONS! RESTORE THE ROAR!

by Twon82 on Nov 26, 2009 10:41 PM EST reply actions

Actually, Denny McLain DOES apparently blog regularly for In Play! Magazine

Some selected quotes from Wikipedia:

“McLain writes a monthly editorial column and blogs regularly for * In Play! Magazine, a Detroit sports magazine.”
http://www.inplaymagazine.com/blogs.php?blog=Detroit-Tigers

“By this time, McLain had serious arm trouble, inadvertently made worse by numerous cortisone shots he took for his sore arm.”

Sounds legit to me.

Denny’s not completely off-base here. He’s right about his own experience; it WAS a different time. Teams today are more careful with their bigger investments than they were back then. MLB, the NBA, and NFL salaries in real dollars are much higher than they were then. I don’t think they had MRI’s back then. I remember back in high school in the late 70’s they were talking about cat scans and radial spectroscopy as new things. As for the exact condition of Stafford’s shoulder, I haven’t seen his MRI, and I’m no expert anyway, so I’m in no position to comment. Regardless of the severity of the injury, it’s obvious that Safford played in some pain, so I do commend him for that.

I suppose the main objection to Denny’s post is that the tone is very bitter. In a way, Denny is similar to rbanner. Rbanner is the bitter old fan who remembers past days of glory; Denny McLain is a bitter old ex-player who remembers past days of glory. I don’t fault Denny for his arm troubles; he was young and trusting. But as the title of his autobiography states, “I’m Not Perfect”. Lots of players have short careers. But it seems like Denny’s bitterness stems from what he made of his life after baseball……….the choices he made, and the consequences of those choices.

Here’s some more quotes from Wikipedia:

“Additionally, he reportedly once accepted over $100,000 to fly a wanted felon out of the country.”

“He was imprisoned for drug trafficking (cocaine), embezzlement, and racketeering with Anthony Spilotro and later John Gotti Jr..”

“McLain and several partners bought the Peet Packing Company (Farmer Peet’s) located in the small town of Chesaning, Michigan in 1994. The company went bankrupt two years later. In 1996, he was convicted on charges of embezzlement, mail fraud, and conspiracy in connection with the theft of $2.5 million from the Peet employees’ pension fund. McLain spent six years in prison; to this day he insists he knew nothing about the shady financial deals alleged by the government. The employees never received all money owed to them.”

I don’t know about you, but I’m hungry for some Farmer Peet’s.

What? He can’t block a dead gopher? Humph, details.

by GRLion on Nov 27, 2009 4:49 AM EST reply actions