To play on Sunday, Jordy Nelson has to practice first. To do that, the wide receiver must be able to deal with the pain.
Although he is not treating Nelson, orthopedic surgeon at BayCare Clinic in Green Bay Brian Klika has seen plenty of broken bones and these are among the most painful. Nelson reported suffered several fractured ribs, according to the NFL Network.
“We always use a pain scale as 0-10 and I’m sure that’s anywhere from a 7, 8, 9 or even a 10 out of 10 depending on the severity,” Klika said.
He even cringed when he watched the hit.
The directness and velocity of the hit by cornerback Leon Hall - both obvious over the television broadcast in the Packers 38-13 victory over the Giants on Sunday - are the main factors to this type of injury. Klika noted that this also may be associated with a contusion and even possible damage to the lungs, liver, spleen or kidneys. (These are not reported nor confirmed injuries.)
While simply breathing might be painful for Nelson, playing is not out of the question.
“The challenge with it - obviously in orthopedics we deal with fractures all the time,” Klika said. “They are often extremity fractures and with that it’s easier to immobilize, to splint, to cast and you can’t just do that with a rib injury. So it’s kind of a moving target in a sense.”
Head coach Mike McCarthy said Monday that Nelson would go through rehab all week with the intention of trying to practice on Saturday. If the wide receiver was unable to take the practice field then though, Nelson would not play against the Cowboys.
