Jets top rookie, Calvin Pryor may sit despite doctor's ok

Brian Lewis, New York Post:

Calvin Pryor may have been cleared by the doctors, but getting past the coaches is another matter. Jets coach Rex Ryan said he is leaning toward not playing the first-round pick in Thursday’s preseason opener, to give the rookie safety some more practice time in his return from a concussion. Pryor — who suffered a concussion July 26, the Jets’ first day in pads — passed the NFL’s post-concussion assessment protocol on Monday.

Times have changed, and for the better. New York Jets Free Safety, Calvin Pryor is being held out of Thursday’s night game against the Indianapolis Colts. He has been cleared for contact and has practiced. Head Coach, Rex Ryan believes Pryor would give "a poor account [of] himself" against the Colts because of the lack of practice time he has had.

The first thought that came to mind upon reading of Rex Ryan’s decision in protecting his player was the 1996 training camp quote of Terry Glenn by Patriots Head Coach, Bill Parcells. New England Patriots coach Bill Parcells has been admonished by owner Robert Kraft for referring to rookie wide receiver Terry Glenn as "she." This was in reference to the mild hamstring strain that Glenn had nursed throughout training camp. Asked about Glenn one day at training camp, Parcells said: "She's making progress."

That was minor stuff compared to Arizona State Head Coach, Frank Kush. One of his drills (which was designed to see if his running backs could take punishment carrying the ball) consisted of having only a center, quarterback, and two running backs line up on offense, with no other offensive lineman, and run running plays against the entire defense.

Star RB, Charley Taylor was injured in this drill suffering a broken neck. Kush wanted him to “get up, but he couldn’t”. The most famous of Kush's motivational techniques was called "Mount Kush." Mount Kush was a steep hill near the Sun Devils' practice facility (Camp Tontozona) near Payson, Arizona with several large rocks, cacti, and no shade from the Arizona sun. If a player especially needed discipline in Kush's opinion, that player would have to run up and down that hill numerous times. Charley Taylor recovered from his injury, and is in the Pro Football Hall of Fame.

Thank you Rex Ryan for saying “I’d rather give him a full week of preparation and let him get ready."

Paul Murphy is a freelance writer from New Hampshire.

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