Tennessee TE Delanie Walker left the game today after taking a brutal hit and suffering a concussion. Concussions are severe injuries, and as anyone who follows football knows, it seems as though we still have a ton to learn about how concussions should be handled. There’s no standard return-to-play estimate for concussions, as some players pass all test and miss zero games, while for other players the symptoms linger (and linger and linger). When trying to throw out a quick spitball estimate though, one important thing to consider is the player’s concussion history. Players with a history of concussions tend to miss more time with subsequent concussions than players with no history of concussions. We’re seeing this right now with Browns TE Jordan Cameron, who has been out the last two weeks with his latest concussion. This was Cameron’s third known concussion, having suffered one in 2012 and another in 2013.
Given this importance of concussion history, let’s take a look at Walker’s injury file. Turns out that he suffered a concussion in Week 13 of 2013, and the injury was severe enough to keep him benched for one game. While that’s certainly not as severe as Cameron’s history, it’s nothing to sneeze at either. With today’s injury, Walker has now suffered two concussions within one calendar year, and that’s scary. If I were to guess, I’d say there’s no way Walker plays next week. It’s important to note that Tennessee’s next game is a Monday night matchup, so he does have one additional day to rehab and pass concussion protocol tests. But really, I don’t see that one day making a difference… especially given the severity of that shot he took today.
