Broken leg was no reason to sit for Youngblood

[RamWraith]

I thought this was only appropriate to post this on this forum after all the scuttle butt...JOKE!!! (article is real though) :tongue:


By Bryan Burwell
Of the Post-Dispatch
Thursday, Jan. 27 2005

Even through the long-distance telephone lines, Jack Youngblood still sounds
like a robust man-mountain. His laugh seems to resonate from the depths of some
colossal cavern, full of rich echoes and rumbling thunder.

"Hmmmmmmm," he said, his voice booming with a deep and soothing laugh, "For
some odd reason a lot of folks want to talk to me today. Wonder why I'm so
popular today?"
Of course he knew exactly why his phone was lighting up like a casino slot
machine. Twenty-five years ago, Jack Youngblood played in Super Bowl XIV with
his broken left leg wrapped tightly in tape and metal braces. A quarter of a
century later, Youngblood remains the model of old-school football
sensibilities and legendary, tough-as-nails athletic courage because, after his
fibula was "snapped like a pencil" by two chop-blocking Dallas Cowboys
offensive linemen, the Los Angeles Rams defensive end ignored doctors' orders
and common sense and played in a divisional playoff, the NFC championship game
and the Super Bowl.
And now someone is trying to follow in Youngblood's madman/tough guy footsteps.
Six and a half weeks after he broke his ankle, Eagles wide receiver Terrell
Owens announced that he has every intention of playing in Super Bowl XXXIX. His highly respected doctor, who a few days ago rather publicly refused to give
Owens a clean bill of heath, says the star receiver is out of his mind and is
worried that Owens is flirting with medical disaster.
So even with two screws and a plate still inserted under his skin, T.O. says no
one will stop him from playing. A lot of folks think they know what must be
running through Owens' mind - or at least what they think should be running
through his mind. Some former players have said he's crazy. Some commentators,
writers and fans have rolled their eyes at him and muttered that this is just
another headline-grabbing, attention-snatching stunt by the master
self-promoter. Other less opinionated folks are unsure whether T.O. is being
courageous or crazy.
But Hall of Famer Jack Youngblood is the one man who truly knows what would
motivate Owens to indulge in such risky business.
"If you have a true passion for the game, what else are you gonna do?"
Youngblood said. "You're a football player. That's what football players do. I
hear people talk about he's taking a risk of ending his career. Well, you know
what I say to that? What risk? You mean the same risk he took 6 1/2 weeks ago
when he broke it the first time? You mean the same risk every football player
takes every time they walk out on the field, no matter how healthy they may be?
Come on, that's the price you pay to play this game. The risk is no different
on Dec. 6 as it is on Super Bowl Sunday. We all know it, and we all accept it."

[theodus69]

Now that's a man!!!!! Youngblood I mean. :tough:

[DJRamFan]

Even though I'm a little young to have watched him play, he's one of my all time favorite Rams.

[RealRam]

Regardless of what TO does now, injured or not, he is no Jack Youngblood! He may be a real ProBowl WR, but in terms of character, there's no comparison with our True HOF DE Jack Youngblood.

All Ram... His stamina, heart and endurance are rare.

It is actually an injustice to be referring to these two football players on the same page.

[psycho9985]

Jack Youngblood is my all time Ram fav thats why theres an 85 in my handle guess what 99 is

[Yodude]

Even though I'm a little young to have watched him play, he's one of my all time favorite Rams.

That's one of the benefits of being over 40.....having had a chance to watch Youngblood play.

Not quite sure what the other benefits are ...I'm still working on that. :redface: