There was too much downtime in the offseason for Daniel Wilcox.
After he underwent surgery in January to repair his sprained left big toe, doctors ordered the Ravens tight end to stay off it for several months, adding that the healing process typically takes about a year.
Naturally, Wilcox was concerned that his toe might impede his return to the job he loves. Just as worrisome was whether there would be a job for him to return to.
"This is a scary league, where if you sit out for too long, somebody could come in and have your position in a matter of days or weeks," Wilcox said Monday after his first practice since being activated off the team's physically-unable-to-perform list. "It's not a lot of fun watching guys rotate in and out of your position and not knowing when you get back whether you're going to have an opportunity to get your job back or earn that respect back with a new coaching staff."
It's a frank statement that illustrates the roller-coaster life in the NFL. Players have said nothing compares to making a living on the stage of what some consider America's most popular sport, but there are no guarantees that the stage will always be open.
Wilcox is all too familiar with the whims of the NFL. In 2001, he was an undrafted rookie who found brief stays with the New York Jets and Tampa Bay Buccaneers before latching on with the Ravens in 2004 and working himself into a spot behind two-time Pro Bowl selection Todd Heap on the depth chart.
"I've never had job security," Wilcox said. "I've been a free agent from Day One. So I've always had a free-agent mind-frame. I could be gone any day. That's why I've continued to play like every day is my last."
It's also part of the reason Wilcox - who was activated off the PUP list Friday - pushed himself to return to practice several months before the projected date given by his doctors.
With Heap sidelined for a week because of a right calf injury and Quinn Sypniewski lost for the season with a knee injury, the Ravens' tight ends through much of training camp were three journeymen in Adam Bergen, Aaron Walker and Keith Heinrich.
Wilcox - who has endured hamstring and ankle injuries, including sprained left and right ankles last season - said he was amazed at the toll the sprained big toe took on him.
