One of the misconceptions with the lockout is that NFL teams are completely shut out from tracking the progress of injured players' rehab. While it's true that they can't oversee players' rehab or directly communicate with them over their progress, it's not like there isn't information flowing in about what is going on, as Jim Schwartz explained earlier this week.
"Our trainers are in communication with - not the players - but the people who are doing their rehab,'' Schwartz said today at the NFL's annual owners' meeting. "I'm not sure exactly how often they're in touch, but I get reports on a fairly consistent basis. That doesn't mean I get a report every time somebody talks to a guy or something like that. We can't supervise, but we can communicate with the supervisors.''
Matthew Stafford has eliminated the middle man by talking about how his rehab is going on Twitter. Some of you have jokingly said that the purpose of creating his Twitter account was to keep the team informed about his progress. While that's probably not the reason, it is an interesting point.
The Lions likely get periodic updates about his rehab, but like Schwartz said, they don't hear about every little thing that goes on. Thanks to Twitter, they can still get information in real time and probably much more frequently than they were before. It's not extensive or detailed, but it beats hearing nothing for days at a time about your franchise quarterback. In that regard, you have to love technology.
UPDATE: A couple hours ago Stafford tweeted this:
Didn't get twitter to let coaches kno how I'm doin...they know. Just want our fans to know how were doing...
I'm not sure if this was in response to what I posted or not. If it is, I want to be clear that I was not insinuating that the reason behind Stafford creating a Twitter account was for the coaches to get updates on his health. My point was that some people on here jokingly suggested that, and while it wasn't Stafford's motive, having a Twitter account does allow the team to follow what he is doing. (Side note: Pro Football Talk has already blown Stafford's tweet out of proportion, suggesting the Lions are making illegal contact with him.)