This has not been a good week for CFL players. Two of the nicest guys in the game have gone down with season-ending injuries. Fred Stamps of the Edmonton Eskimos suffered internal bleeding after taking a hard hit early in last week’s game. He complained of tenderness and was taken to hospital where it was determined that he had internal bleeding and that he would need immediate season-ending surgery. Thankfully the surgery went well and he is home in Edmonton recuperating.
The second injury hits closer to home – Kevin Eiben one of the nicest guys on a team full of nice guys, the Toronto Argonauts, suffered a torn pectoral muscle (even typing that hurts!) in last week’s loss to Montreal. the MRI revealed that surgery was required and Kevin’s season ended on Tuesday.
Football is a collision sport. It usually involves two (or more) people hurling themselves at each other in order to get or stop a gain of yards. Injuries happen. What has been amazing is how each of these men have stepped back up and supported their teammates while injured. Fred Stamps is a leader in the locker room as well as on the field and has stated that his injury will not alter that. Kevin Eiben was at Argo team meetings on Wednesday morning after his surgery on Tuesday evening.
That’s what is so great about the CFL. Players care enough about their team and their teammates that even when their season is done, they still come back and support them. This is truly OUR league.