Jaylon Smith nerve countdown

The Quest for Six

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So, Jaylon Smith's surgery was January 6. Team doctor says:

"While Cooper says Smith’s nerve injury wasn’t in a more severe category and he has “a very good chance of the nerve recovering,” there is no way to be certain that’ll happen or speed up the process. Nerves regrow at a rate of about 1 inch per month after a one-month lag time, Cooper said, and the injured area is roughly 6 inches above the muscle, so Smith has at least several more months of wait-and-see ahead."

So doing the math: Jan. 6 + one-month lag + 6 months for 6 inches of nerve = August 6. Obviously not a firm date, but if all holds true, we should know something around that time. Would be awesome news during camp if the nerve refires and the drop foot is gone.

He's not playing this year....
 

Knotamus

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Was not worth the risk.

Well, that's pretty easy to say..

Can't say I loved the pick myself, mainly because it took me by surprise. But you can say every last one of these guys are risky at some level or another.. Questions like.. Does he have talent? Can he stay off the weed?(yeah, you know who I'm talking ab..but he's not the only one by any means)... Everyone of these players have question marks outside the blue chippers of each draft class.. And even those don't pan out half the time. Atleast with Jaylon.. You know he has talent, high IQ, keeps his nose clean, and sparks others to play at his level. He's going to be the steal of the draft without a doubt. After reading everything I could about his procedure and recovery process.. And the fact that his own doctor said.. It's not about if.. It's about when? So it's not much risk involved.. It's more about patience. The census top LB in this draft.
 

KJJ

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That's true.

But I wouldn't be surprised if some other team would have drafted him in round 2.

Wouldn't have surprised me either if another team had drafted him in round 2 but it would have been a team that didn't have the pressing need for an immediate defensive starter. With all the holes the Cowboys have defensively they can't afford to gamble a premium pick and wait on a player hoping they can recover from a serious knee injury.
 

Walker

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NE denies the report, would anyone expect them not to? Why would you say you would makes no business sense and gain nothing out of it.
 

FuzzyLumpkins

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So, Jaylon Smith's surgery was January 6. Team doctor says:

"While Cooper says Smith’s nerve injury wasn’t in a more severe category and he has “a very good chance of the nerve recovering,” there is no way to be certain that’ll happen or speed up the process. Nerves regrow at a rate of about 1 inch per month after a one-month lag time, Cooper said, and the injured area is roughly 6 inches above the muscle, so Smith has at least several more months of wait-and-see ahead."

So doing the math: Jan. 6 + one-month lag + 6 months for 6 inches of nerve = August 6. Obviously not a firm date, but if all holds true, we should know something around that time. Would be awesome news during camp if the nerve refires and the drop foot is gone.

It doesn't work like that. The nerve gets down to the muscle in that time but the final synapses between the muscle and the nerve is not a set time frame like the nerve regeneration itself. Doctors as of 2011 are not sure the biomechanics behind it and it was cutting edge research to find out.

That stuff is behind pay walls and I was not going to pay multiple archive fees for something I may not even find. Doctors that I ahve spoken to about it are also murky. August 6th is when the water gets murky.
 

CCBoy

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It doesn't work like that. The nerve gets down to the muscle in that time but the final synapses between the muscle and the nerve is not a set time frame like the nerve regeneration itself. Doctors as of 2011 are not sure the biomechanics behind it and it was cutting edge research to find out.

That stuff is behind pay walls and I was not going to pay multiple archive fees for something I may not even find. Doctors that I ahve spoken to about it are also murky. August 6th is when the water gets murky.

Thanks for your efforts, Fuzzy...
 

FuzzyLumpkins

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Thanks for your efforts, Fuzzy...

Thanks man. The funny thing is both sides are right. They are just insisting on equally plausible outcomes. As doctor Cooper said, he has seen kids where the nerve comes back as soon as it gets down to the muscle and regain strength quickly. I've read stuff where there is a range of return of function where doctors were trying to figure out why.

One of the things they said was that if the muscle atrophied past a certain percentage of original mass it was fait accompli that the recovery was at best partial. Given that I imagine they are electronically stimulating it to prevent atrophy. Thing was that didn't explain it all and they were looking at white blood cells, proteins, scar tissue and other chemical states around the muscle. Some of the stuff looked promising but I wasn't going to pay hundreds of dollars for something I might not find for the newer research.
 

tyke1doe

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I felt that way on draft day. But water under the bridge. Just hoping things fall into place and we see him on the field in the second half of the year.

My feelings too. Can't do anything about it now so I hope he's a stud player when he comes back from his injury. All I have is hope now. :)
 

jnday

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I don't know why people insist on doing this.

Let him get healthy.

Not his fault we took him where we did and there are now time tables.

I find it comical that posters are behind this pick now, but they would have rioted if you told them that Smith would be the second round pick the day before the draft. He was not even in the conversation as the second round pick. A few posters said they would take a chance on him with a late round pick, but nobody had expectations of him playing this season. Now they are starting a countdown with the hopes that an inch a month is going to happen.
 

Chuck 54

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I didn't see anyone still on the board at 34 that I was excited about as an impact guy this year, so I'm fine waiting on him till next year. Overall, I like our draft; I'm almost 60, so I tend to take the long term view with rookies rather than expecting much from them in year one anyway.

Even if one of the DEs we liked hadn't been selected, history tells us it would have been year two or three before they contributed significantly.
 

Maxmadden

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NE denies the report, would anyone expect them not to? Why would you say you would makes no business sense and gain nothing out of it.

Well, if NE denied it I have no reason to think they would lie. First class organizations don't need to lie unless they have some reason to.

On a sidenote, NE has taken several high risk chances over the years on draft choices and the past few years they have not drafted very well in general.. Bellicheck better retire the same day as Brady or his genius will go down the drain.
 

Maxmadden

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I find it comical that posters are behind this pick now, but they would have rioted if you told them that Smith would be the second round pick the day before the draft. He was not even in the conversation as the second round pick. A few posters said they would take a chance on him with a late round pick, but nobody had expectations of him playing this season. Now they are starting a countdown with the hopes that an inch a month is going to happen.

What do you expect them to do? Sit around and whine about it for the next six months.
 

Bowdown27

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This kid woulda went top 3 if it wasn't for injury. Our doctors knew the best considering they did the surgery. If we didn't take him at that pick someone else was taking him in the second. Kid imo will be a stud and he's determined to prove it. and everyone will be satisfied.
 
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