Concussion

That the NFL is a league of attrition might be the most certain thing that can be said about it. As an illustration, here's a list of some probable starting quarterbacks this weekend, all of whom inherited their jobs entirely or in part because of injuries. In some cases, we're three deep on the depth chart. In Carolina, Matt Moore, an undrafted rookie, could be the Panthers' fourth starting quarterback this season because Vinny Testaverde (himself hauled out of semi-retirement) has an Achilles' problem and Carolina has thrown up its hands with David Carr.

Lansdowne junior football player Steve Sickle suffered a bruised and swollen spinal cord, a severely broken thumb and a concussion after fainting and falling face-first on the ground in Friday's loss to Hereford.Sickle, 15, said from his home last night that he was released from University Hospital after surgery to repair a broken thumb, and that he must return for a checkup Thursday to further examine his spinal cord injury.Doctors said Sickle, a champion weightlifter and also a baseball player, "is done for the football season," he said.

IRVING, Texas -- Troy Aikman doesn't remember the hit that knocked him out of Monday's Minnesota game. Two days later, the headaches persist and he admits to being a little dizzy.Still, the Dallas quarterback was thinking clearly enough yesterday to clear up some of the questions regarding his status.Aikman will not play Sunday against the Green Bay Packers. He stressed that while he takes his latest concussion seriously -- the ninth by his count -- he has not considered retirement.The Cowboys quarterback avoided setting a timetable for his return but did say he hoped to be ready for the game against Arizona on Nov. 21. Aikman, 32, acknowledged that he was told he suffered a concussion against Indianapolis 11 days ago even though Cowboys officials have repeatedly maintained he didn't.

A Towson High sophomore linebacker suffered head and neck injuries yesterday during a junior varsity football game at the school's stadium.Will Leavy briefly lost consciousness after being tackled. He was transported by Maryland State Police helicopter to the Maryland Shock Trauma Center as a precautionary measure, a Baltimore County fire official said. Leavy was listed in serious but stable condition last night with a concussion and possible neck injury.Last week, a Towson High varsity player was treated for a similar injury, said coach Edward Pfaff, noting there has been as many four county football players injured in such a way this year.

Injured Ravens wide receiver Jermaine Lewis is expected to play Sunday against the San Diego Chargers, but free safety Kim Herring will not and tight end Eric Green's status will be determined this morning.It's that time of the season when injuries are starting to mount, as two starters -- Lewis (concussion) and Herring (dislocated left shoulder) -- were hurt in the Ravens' 13-10 win over the Oakland Raiders on Sunday. Meanwhile, Green is trying to recover from a dislocated left pinkie he injured in practice last week.

COLLEGE PARK -- Brian Cummings is supposed to have a big mouth, but twice he handed over his starting quarterback position at Maryland with nary a peep. He's put on hold his baseball career, played with a separated shoulder and spent 24 frightening hours vomiting after a concussion, all for the good of the Terps.Does that sound like a quitter, the accusation Cummings faced last winter?Cummings is undersized and overhearted, a fifth-year senior who's been known to work a huddle with too much lip and a play with too much grit.

The 1997 NFL season was a great year for running backs, not so hot for quarterbacks, and an abysmal year for fallen franchises like the Dallas Cowboys and Oakland Raiders.The two striking themes that ran concurrently through the regular season were in evidence on the same field just last Sunday. In the Year of the Running Back, Detroit's Barry Sanders became the third player to break the 2,000-yard barrier, and first since 1984.But even as Sanders was running into history in a 13-10 win over the New York Jets, Lions linebacker Reggie Brown was fighting for his life after a devastating spinal injury that had players from both teams weeping on the field.

In a previous column, we reported on guidelines for returning athletes to sports after a concussion (a transient alteration in mental status caused by a blow to the head). The importance of following these guidelines is highlighted in a recent issue of the Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report published by the Centers for Disease Control and Health Promotion.The March 14 issue reports on the death of two young football players, both of whom died from complications of what has come to be termed "second impact syndrome."

Top performances300-yard passersPlayer, Team, C-A, Yds., TDBrunell, T.B., 21-34, 356, 1Blake, Cin., 23-39, 313, 3100-yard rushersPlayer, Team, No., Yds., TDGeorge, Hou., 28, 141, 2Johnson, Car., 26, 111, 1Davis, Den., 26, 106, 1Bettis, Pit., 24, 105, 0Watters, Phi., 29, 104, 0Morris, Ravens, 28, 100, 0100-yard receiversPlayer, Team, No., Yds., TDAlexander, Ravens, 7, 198, 1Smith, Jac., 7, 162, 0Freeman, G.B., 10, 156, 0C. Johnson, Pit., 8, 117, 0Early, Buf.,...

You think that lately you've seen plenty of Cigar, the Maryland-bred champion with 16 straight wins? Think again.Allen E. Paulson, owner of the 6-year-old superhorse, has turned over management of Cigar's name, image and likeness to CMG Worldwide Inc., the Indianapolis firm that holds similar rights to Ruffian and Secretariat.Already, CMG has created a home page on the Internet for Cigar. The site includes photos and a chronology of Cigar's career and eventually will provide information on all licensed products.

Matt Birk knows concussions. The Ravens center has had three confirmed in his life, the most recent of which left him in a fog on the sideline of a home game in Minnesota trying to remember how exactly to leave the field. Birk is not as knowledgeable, however, about the practice thuds and collisions that never register on the concussion meter but jostle the brain nevertheless. Those are the ones that concern him now, the ones that might come back to haunt him 20 years down the road when he suddenly forgets where he left the car keys - or the car. "What worries me," Birk, 33, said last week, "is the repeated trauma every day, the many collisions of playing offensive line.

Ravens center Matt Birk has agreed to donate his brain and spinal cord tissue to a widening study of brain trauma. The Center for the Study of Traumatic Encephalopathy at the Boston University School of Medicine announced Monday that Birk, Lofa Tatupu of the Seattle Seahawks and Sean Morey of the Arizona Cardinals are the first active NFL players to make plans to donate their brains after death. More than 150 former athletes, including 40 retired NFL players, are in the program's brain donation registry.

New TNA women's champion Angelina Love confirmed on her MySpace account that she suffered a concussion during the cage match at the Lockdown pay-per-view Sunday. (For more, go to baltimoresun.com/ringposts)

The good news for Orioles utility man Ryan Freel is that he was not diagnosed with another concussion after being hit in the head with an errant pickoff throw Monday. The bad news is that it still landed him in the hospital for a night and on the disabled list for 15 days. "It's head trauma, not a concussion or a mild concussion," said Freel, who was placed on the DL on Tuesday, when the Orioles promoted outfielder Lou Montanez from Triple-A Norfolk. In the third inning of Monday's loss to the Boston Red Sox, Freel was trying to get back to second base when pitcher Justin Masterson's pickoff throw plunked the right side of his head.

Buffalo Bills quarterback Trent Edwards went down with a concussion on the third play of the game against the Arizona Cardinals yesterday. Safety Adrian Wilson blitzed untouched and leveled the second-year quarterback, slamming him to the ground. Edwards, who had directed Buffalo to a 4-0 record, lay on the ground for several minutes before being helped to the sideline. He was carted off the field, and the Bills reported a short time later that he had a concussion. Edwards completed a 13-yard pass to James Hardy just before he was hit by Wilson.

Group would like to be consulted I agree with the concerns that The Sun's Mike Preston expressed in his column Wednesday ["Game must act: Concussions shouting warning to powers that be"]. But I don't understand why he didn't take the time to contact the sport's Baltimore-based national governing body - US Lacrosse - to get our perspective and, more importantly, learn what is being done to address this concern. Among other things, US Lacrosse is launching a video surveillance study, in partnership with MedStar SportsHealth, to better understand the mechanism of concussion in high school girls and boys lacrosse.

There are between 1.6 million and 3.8 million sports-related concussions a year, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The majority of those injuries are caused by playing football, says Dr. Yvette Rooks, a family medicine physician at the University of Maryland Medical Center and team physician for the University of Maryland, College Park. As the weather warms up and kids stream outside to participate in sports such as lacrosse and bicycling, it makes sense to take precautions against head injuries.

I realize in the NFL, when it comes to quarterbacks, never say never. Exhibit A -- Vinny Testaverde's comeback last year at age 44. Exhibit B -- David Carr signing with the New York Giants this week after failing to hold a job in Carolina, where the main competition was an undrafted free agent signed off waivers named Matt Moore. So I'm not going to write off Trent Dilfer, who was cut yesterday -- on his 36th birthday -- by the San Francisco 49ers after 14 seasons in the league, including one very memorable stretch in Baltimore when he was the quarterback of record for the Ravens' Super Bowl victory.

Two days after he remained committed to Kyle Boller as his starting quarterback, Ravens coach Brian Billick acknowledged that his plans might have to change. With Boller feeling lingering effects from a concussion, Troy Smith could make his first NFL start Sunday when the Ravens play the Seahawks in Seattle. Ravens@Seahawks Sunday, 4:15 p.m., chs. 13, 9, 1090 AM, 97.9 FM Line: Off the board

That the NFL is a league of attrition might be the most certain thing that can be said about it. As an illustration, here's a list of some probable starting quarterbacks this weekend, all of whom inherited their jobs entirely or in part because of injuries. In some cases, we're three deep on the depth chart. In Carolina, Matt Moore, an undrafted rookie, could be the Panthers' fourth starting quarterback this season because Vinny Testaverde (himself hauled out of semi-retirement) has an Achilles' problem and Carolina has thrown up its hands with David Carr.