Shawne Merriman News: Pro Sports Daily

0 Comment

October 11

San Diego Union-Tribune

"Shawne Merriman was alternately upbeat and wistful in a phone conversation Friday, but he was also typically bold. "I'm excited," he said, "because I've never had a fully functional knee (in the NFL). It's a little scary to think what I can do going out there and getting off full speed without my knee giving way a little." Merriman said Friday was his first day off crutches, something he did not expect to do until next week, which will mark the one-month anniversary of his Sept. 15 surgery to repair two torn ligaments in his left knee. He said he is rehabbing diligently, running in a pool and expects to run on land by November. His plan is to be full-go by minicamp in May. Merriman said ..."

'Lights Out' shuts off

0 Comment

September 10

San Diego Union-Tribune

"In a decision that was shocking only because of the way he played two days earlier, Chargers linebacker Shawne Merriman Tuesday decided he can play no more in his current condition. General Manager A.J. Smith said Merriman informed him Tuesday he will undergo surgery to reconstruct the torn ligaments in his left knee. "He walked in and said it didn't feel right and he was going to shut it down," Smith said. Merriman will be placed on injured reserve and miss the remainder of the season. He is expected to return in time for the start of the 2009 season, which is his final one under contract with the Chargers. It is not known when or where Merriman will have the surgery to repair the ..."

Pro Bowl linebacker done for year; so deal with it

0 Comment

September 10

San Diego Union-Tribune

columnist Nick Canepa

"In this day of Internet groping, which often only leads to more brain flatulence among American sports fans, it's going to happen. Sirens are blaring. The Chargers season has ended. It hasn't. To even suggest it has, on Sept. 10, is like saying ripping down the Berlin Wall finished Russia once and for all. Millions of knees should not be jerking at once, although that could be a solution to our alternative energy dilemma. What the football team and star linebacker Shawne Merriman told us Tuesday was not a eulogy. It certainly wasn't a birth announcement, but it wasn't a death certificate, either. Because we have no way of knowing how this will play out. If we did, we'd all be on our ..."

Merriman opts to play

0 Comment

August 28

San Diego Union-Tribune

"Shawne Merriman will start the season, but he might not finish it. He knows that, and he is not obsessing. He seems neither optimistic nor pessimistic about his chances of still playing in December or January. "It's literally game to game," Merriman said late yesterday. He just wants to start the season. "If it's game to game, I've got to play the first game," he said. Merriman will have reconstructive surgery on his torn posterior cruciate ligament and lateral collateral ligament at some point. But after four doctors advised him in the past week that his best course of action was to have that procedure on his left knee immediately, Merriman said yesterday he will begin the season. "I'm ..."

Merriman's two ligament tears and when they occurred

0 Comment

August 28

San Diego Union-Tribune

"Posterior cruciate ligament: Merriman suffered this tear, which he has classified as a grade three, the worst it can be, in his second NFL game. It happened while he was running down to cover the opening kickoff in an exhibition game Aug. 26, 2005, at Minnesota. Players have played their entire careers with this injury. The PCL provides front-to-back stability.

Lateral collateral ligament: This injury happened Dec. 9 at Tennessee and became an immediate source of friction. At the time, Merriman called the hit by Kevin Mawae and David Stewart a "cheap shot," and game tape made it appear so. In fact, the league fined Mawae and Stewart. The severity of Merriman's LCL tear is unknown, ..."

No doubt Merriman has ESPN; GM wonders if he has ESP, too

0 Comment

August 28

San Diego Union-Tribune

"One of the reasons Shawne Merriman gave for so vehemently wanting to play on despite his knee injuries is the bonds he has with fellow Chargers and the success he believes they're poised to achieve. "I want to play, regardless of all that," Merriman said before leaving for South Florida for his final consultation on his knee. "I have teammates, I have friends in that locker room. I care about them. We're going to win a couple Super Bowls here." That quote, in yesterday's Union-Tribune, caught the eye of some around the NFL, where anything resembling a prediction of Super Bowl victories is frowned upon. Asked about Merriman's assertion, Chargers General Manager A.J. Smith was at first ..."

It's his knee, so it's also his decision

0 Comment

August 28

San Diego Union-Tribune

columnist Nick Canepa

"This isn't "Fantastic Voyage," so I can't shrink and get into Shawne Merriman's body. Nor can he get into mine, which I'm sure would make for a terribly upsetting visit. Merriman isn't a doctor, but he knows his own body, which hasn't often betrayed him during his first 24 years. It's his life, has been his life, and he has no reason to mistrust what he can do with it. Merriman is young, big, fast, strong, mean, talented, dedicated and, at the same time, outgoing, stubborn and philanthropic, with a big dash of vanity in his personal cocktail. He may be the NFL's most dangerous on-the-field terror. But, despite being all of the above, he also has a bum left knee, which he says has two torn ..."

Injured Merriman opts to begin season

0 Comment

August 28

San Diego Union-Tribune

"Chargers linebacker Shawne Merriman has decided to begin the season despite two torn ligaments in his left knee, he said this morning. "I'm going to play," Merriman said via text message to the Union-Tribune. "I'll deal with it when it's time to get surgery."Merriman, who returned from South Florida on Tuesday night, has decided against the recommendations of doctors to forego reconstructive surgery on the posterior cruciate and lateral collateral ligaments. Those doctors also told him he could play but that he risks what he described as "career-threatening" injury if he does.The Chargers always have been optimistic Merriman would play. He was medically cleared by the team before training ..."

Merriman visits another specialist

0 Comment

August 27

San Diego Union-Tribune

"Linebacker Shawne Merriman will be back at Chargers Park today after seeing a specialist yesterday in Coral Gables, Fla. He is expected to decide what to do regarding his knee by the end of the week. The Chargers have to reduce their roster to the opening-day limit of 53 by 3 p.m. Saturday. According to a source with knowledge of the situation, Merriman was not told anything different in South Florida from what he'd heard from previous orthopedists regarding his injuries or the prognosis. The recommendation from all the doctors has been that his best course of action would be to have surgery immediately to repair his torn PCL and LCL. That would force him to sit out the season. The ..."

For Merriman, lights out now is a bright idea

0 Comment

August 26

San Diego Union-Tribune

columnist Nick Canepa

"Shawne Merriman's motor is one of those freak things you find in Popular Mechanics. It never stops. But, if what the Pro Bowl outside linebacker and his disciples say is true - and I'm without X-ray vision and far more Mr. Hyde than Dr. Jekyll - the Chargers' most decorated defender should turn it off and coast into his garage. Maybe the fans aren't prepared to deal with it and what repercussions Merriman's inactivity would mean to a Super Bowl favorite. But the Chargers seem prepared, although team doctors have cleared him. Or, maybe you can explain why San Diego yesterday rewarded linebacker Jyles Tucker, a rookie free agent in 2007, a five-year contract extension that will guarantee him ..."

Merriman's knee injury worse than feared

0 Comment

August 24

San Diego Union-Tribune

"There is one person among all those in Shawne Merriman's inner stratum who favors him playing this season. That person standing alone, refusing to give in, is Merriman himself - a freakishly built 24-year-old with a gladiator scene tattooed across his broad back, a man who believes all things are possible with passion and hard work. According to someone close to Merriman, the recommendations from doctors and other advisers is that he undergo surgery on his left knee immediately and get ready for 2009. But Merriman presses on, defying so far the advice of those who say he should not. "I'm stubborn as hell," Merriman said yesterday. He will not detail what advice he is getting. But he says, ..."

Chargers' Merriman has two torn ligaments in left knee

1 Comment

August 24

Rocky Mountain News

"Chargers Pro Bowl linebacker Shawne Merriman said Saturday he has two torn ligaments in his left knee and has been told by doctors that he could suffer a possible career-ending injury if he attempts to play without having surgery. Merriman said he has tears in both the posterior cruciate and lateral collateral ligaments. He said doctors agree that he needs surgery to repair the damage. "It could be career-threatening if I did (play)," Merriman said. "It's a possibility. That possibility is still open." A course of action has not been decided. Merriman, who will consult with a doctor in Miami early next week before making a decision, has been told reconstructive surgery would sideline him ..."

Merriman won't rush his decision

0 Comment

August 23

San Diego Union-Tribune

"Shawne Merriman is thinking he will not rush a decision on what to do about his injured knee. So, while he is expected to return to Chargers Park today and the Chargers believe he will be ready for the Sept. 7 season opener, there is still much to be considered. Merriman, who according to sources did not visit a specialist in Miami but might have been seeing one in Minnesota yesterday, is deciding among three main options. He can resume practicing and begin the season on time, have a minor surgery that would keep him out a short while or undergo reconstructive surgery that would erase his 2008 season. Merriman has identified the significant problem in his left knee as being a tear in the ..."

What's next for Merriman?

0 Comment

August 22

San Diego Union-Tribune

"Shawne Merriman was in New York yesterday to see a specialist and was pondering seeing another doctor today, as he and his advisers attempt to gather enough information to decide when and if he will play this season. "It's finding out what do I need to fix, what I need to do," Merriman said by phone. "If it's left up to me, I want to play football. I can't stand sitting out." Merriman's options for fixing what he said was a torn posterior cruciate ligament (among other issues) in his left knee range from doing nothing to having a surgery that would delay the start of his season to undergoing reconstructive surgery that would keep him out all season. Even as Merriman deals with his knee, he ..."

Merriman consults orthopedist

0 Comment

August 21

San Diego Union-Tribune

"Shawne Merriman will return from Birmingham, Ala., today after consulting with orthopedic surgeon Dr. James Andrews about lingering pain in his left knee. Further surgery is an option for the three-time Pro Bowl linebacker, but it is also possible Merriman will be able to begin the season. Merriman, who has been working rigorously on the side throughout training camp, made the decision along with his advisers to see Andrews on Tuesday and flew to Alabama. He was examined by Andrews yesterday, but a source said a diagnosis and course of action will not be known for a while. "It's still lingering, the same (stuff) as last year," said a source close to Merriman. Merriman played through the ..."

Gates practices; Merriman to visit surgeon

0 Comment

August 20

North County Times

"Chargers tight end Antonio Gates reached a milestone in his rehabilitation from a toe injury Tuesday while linebacker Shawne Merriman's persistent knee pain has him heading across country for an examination. Merriman missed two more practices Tuesday and wasn't at Chargers Park. He was en route to Alabama to see Dr. James Andrews for what was described by a team official as a "follow-up exam." It was Andrews who repaired cartilage damage in Merriman's left knee five months ago. Merriman isn't expected back to Chargers Park until Thursday. Gates passed a physical, was taken off the Physically Unable to Perform list and participated in part of practice for the first time during training ..."