Ryan Lilja failed a physical
by Brad Wells on Mar 12, 2010 10:57 AM EST
in Colts News
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PrintThe latest update we have on the bizarre releasing of productive guard Ryan Lilja is that he might have been injured.
According to Adam Caplan, host of a Sirius NFL radio show and a writer for profootball.scout.com, Lilja failed a physical before being cut by the Colts. He posted the news on Twitter in response to a question from coltsbrasil who may be the same coltsbrasil we see commenting on our site from time to time.
This news is rather odd given the fact that the Colts paid Lilja his $1.7 million dollar roster bonus before cutting him. Adding to the oddness, Lilja's agent made it perfectly clear that the reason for cutting Lilja was that the Colts wanted to get "bigger" on the offensive line. Lilja is 6'2, 290 in a league where most o-linemen are 310 and over.
Obviously, Lilja's agent could be throwing up a smoke screen to mask the fact that his client is hurt. An injury would damper Lilja's chances of signing with a new team quickly. But, given that the Colts just signed Andy Alleman (6'4, 310 pounds) and hosted former-Ravens tackle Adam Terry yesterday (6'8, 335 pounds), it seems that Lilja's agent might not have been blowing smoke regarding the Colts' desire to get bigger on the offensive line.
If Lilja is hurt, then I can understand the move. He battled through tough injuries in 2008, and maybe the guy is just wearing down. He had a tremendous career here in Indy and I will have nothing but fond memories of him as a Colts player. He was one of the core guys to turn the team around and solidify an o-line for arguably the greatest offense in NFL history.
I hope he is healthy and lands on his feet somewhere that will appreciate his talent and character. However, if he was cut because of a re-occurring or new injury, that makes sense for the Colts.
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hmm this is just getting more and more interesting.
We may never know the truth lol
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by TheAngelsColts on Mar 12, 2010 11:02 AM EST reply actions
I wonder what the exact injury was
and maybe the gave him the bonus just because of who he is. I mean if Jennings was due a bonus, he wouldn’t get it if there was a choice but Lilja’s awesome.
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If they didn't give Lilja his bonus
It might have affected other players’ willingness to restructure.
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by gizzardfanny on Mar 12, 2010 1:54 PM EST up reply actions
This is not news
Teams can pass or fail any player on a physical. You think Joe Kleko ever passed a physical? Or Tony Siragusa?
This is often done if a team changes it’s mind on a trade or when cutting a veteran.
And to think I doubted Polian.
I should know better by now.
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by peytonsthebest on Mar 12, 2010 11:44 AM EST reply actions
I'm both sad and excited about this.
I mean, we all know that the true reason is probably renovation. Since last year, with Marvin and Dungy gone, that has been the story of the Colts. It will certainly be this year as well.
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Running down? If that's so, that makes me worry about two other guys
I mean, Lilja’s not really old-old. He’s 28, and that’s still a young guy. But he’s beginning to get to the point where he can be considered football player old. A guy who doesn’t tend towards injury can definitely last past 28, but someone who’s regularly hobbled by problems… worrisome. A linesman can age fast, you know. Not all positions must suffer contact every play. Linesmen do.
Well, come to think of it, maybe we shouldn’t think of things in terms of “age” as much as “wear”, because that’s really what I’m getting at here: Poor Lilja’s got some wear on him injurywise. Age is not exactly the right way to think about it since it’s measured in time. “Wear” is more applicable here because it’s subjective regarding each individual player’s history. Wear does have time as a component, but it’s not the absolute meansure; after all, not all 6-year players have worn the same over their careers.
Anyway, this is what worries me about Diem: Lilja came to the Colts in ‘04. Diem came in ’01. Only Saturday’s older than both. And obviously they haven’t worn the same, but again: Unless someone doesn’t play, time is a component of wear, and those guys play every first unit offensive down. It makes you wonder how many more years Saturday’s got in him. And Diem is already gone from highly regarded to “can’t he block?” in just the space of a handful of years.
Man… time passes quickly in professional sports. Just when you think a player has finally settled in, he’s suddenly old. That’s rather depressing.
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Reason he was given bonus
I heard the reason he was given the bonus was because he restructured his contract last year and really went beyond expectations. This was a generous and good move by Jim Irsay.
This definitely sheds some light on the situation
Although I supported Polian’s decision in this, I have said that he better have had a damn good reason for doing it, which I thought that he did. When we were signing guys like Alleman, I was getting nervous and frustrated, but given Lilja’s injury woes, this makes sense. Sounds like the bonus paid to him was a generous compensation for his hard work, but due to his health and possibly/likely his size, he may be better suited elsewhere. Nothing wrong with this move.
Just signed Adam Terry as well, who actually is a good lineman. Not Gaither-good, but we should feel much better about this than Alleman. Terry actually is starter-caliber and may thrive in this system. Still think we should draft a guy like Brown/Williams for the outside or Pouncey/Iupati (I know I butchered both of those) for the inside. Terry is not a bad start to the o-line re-vamping though.
"A lot of times, Kenny, we have no idea what we're doing. But the DEFENSE doesn't know that we don't know what we're doing.....and that's next level." -Peyton Manning
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