O-linemen in the draft...maybe this guy would be a steal

[bad radio]

I happened across this article today on ESPN.com. It's an article about this OL/C, Khi Downey from Indiana University of Pennsylvania. He has multiple sclerosis.

http://sports.espn.go.com/nfl/columns/story?columnist=pasquarelli_len&id=1773955

Read this article. If nothing else, it's a good story. It brings up an interesting topic also: would you be upset if the Bills drafted this guy? What difference does having MS make to you if you're a GM? Is it any different than a player with, say, diabetes?

[35Pete]

Another excerpt from the article:

Buffalo coaches and executives are excited by the progress that tailback Willis McGahee has made to this point in the team's offseason conditioning program. The former Miami star, who was chosen with the 23rd overall pick last year but never played a single down as he continued to rehabilitate from a catastrophic knee injury, has demonstrated no more lingering affects from the injury. "He's doing really well," said rookie head coach Mike Mularkey, who reiterated his plans to pair McGahee and starting tailback Travis Henry in some formations. "He's making cuts, running with decisiveness, and isn't hold back on anything. You can tell he's excited being back out there." Mularkey noted at the league meetings that, while the Bills would like to get Kordell Stewart, the quarterback is not yet ready to concede to a backup role. And make no mistake, if he signed with the Bills, the journeyman Stewart would almost certainly be asked to reprise the "Slash" role he once played with the Steelers. The Bills really don't have on their current roster the kind of versatile athlete around whom Mularkey can scheme up some trick plays. They might be forced to add such a flexible player through the draft.

[bad radio]

I missed that part, Pete. Thanks.

[RoboticBill]

It sounds like the guy will be an excellent football player. We do need a center. Unfortunately, he seems a bit large to be a McNally center. 330 pounds is 25 lbs more than McNally would like.

Quick question, will the loss of weight trigger any reactions on Downey's body????

[TigerJ]

I don't know a lot about MS, but my wife's sister-in-law has it so I have learned a few things. It varies somewhat in severity. Earlier onset generally tanslates to slower progression. The main factor against him is that persons with MS are generally advised not to ever get overheated. That seems to aggravate the symptoms and may accelerate the progression of the disease. How does a football player avoid getting overheated, particularly during training camp and early season games in warm climates?

[Mouldsie]

I wqas just reading about him yesterday. I'd take him in the 7th.

[MidnightVoice]

Get a medical opinion or three, and if favorable, he could be a good late round pick

[35Pete]

I don't know. MS is a neurological disorder that affects muscle movement. If he screws up a play or two that would definitely put doubt into the coaches mind. Sorry, but I'd pass on him.

[MidnightVoice]

http://sports.espn.go.com/nfl/columns/story?columnist=pasquarelli_len&id=1773955

This time, when Downey confronts doctors, he will do so with a dossier of medical information and a recommendation from one of the country's most noted MS specialists.

Dr. Rock Heyman, a neurologist at the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center and a man who has studied and treated thousands of MS victims, has opined there is no reason that Downey should not be drafted, if his physical skills merit it.

"He has," Heyman said earlier this week, "no restrictions at all. I will say that in writing and make it very clear to people. Khi Downey, essentially, is asymptomatic. There is no weakness in him. If teams don't want to draft him because they don't feel he is a good enough football player, or lacks the skills to be in the NFL, well, that's one thing. But he shouldn't be avoided in the draft because of the MS. People have to move beyond that."

Whether personnel directors and general managers can see past their noses on Downey's situation, whether they will even attempt to enlighten themselves in the weeks remaining before the draft, remains to be seen. Downey and agent Joe Linta are willing to negate any risk involved by signing a waiver that would absolve teams of any future liability. There could be, Linta acknowledged, some workman's compensation issues, but nothing that is more significant than the norm.

[TigerJ]

MS is an autoimmune disease of unknown cause whereby the body's immune system attacks the myelin tissue which forms a protective sheath around the nerves of the body. MS appears not to be genetic though some family tendency can't be ruled out. The suspicion is that a virus may precipitate it in persons who have the tendency. The myelin is made up of specialized cells called Schwan cells. Early in the progress of the disease it is often, though not always, episodic in nature. Patients will have long symptom free periods interupted by flareups. MS can affect many parts of the body. Everyone is familiar with the muscle weakness and numbness, but some MS patients are affected in their vision. My wife's sister-in-law is afflicted with memory loss, inability to concentrate, inappropriate moods and othe mental symptoms, though I understand that this occurs in only about 5% of all MS cases. The medical literature makes it clear that even during symptom free periods, the myelin material is being gradually degraded. Eventually, many MS patients move to a progressive phase of the disease where they no longer enjoy symptom free periods. Rather they simply gradually develop more severe symptoms.

Incidently, Crabbes Disease, the condition that afflicts Hunter Kelly is also connected to the myelin tissue in the body, though it is a completely different disease. I think with Crabbes the body is unable to produce an enzyme that is essential for the proper breakdown of spent myelin tissue. Without that enzyme, the breakdown of spent myelin tissue produces substances that are toxic to the body.