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Why bad hamstrings happen to good wide receivers
By Tom Curran
Seems like everybody's "got a hammy" these days. Tweaked, pulled, tender or torn, hamstring injuries are hamstringing teams in staggering numbers.
The most publicized hammy belongs to the Dallas Cowboys' Terrell Owens. T.O.'s convalescence has a leg up on the injuries suffered by his pass-catching colleagues because, well, he's T.O.
But there are others. There's last season's Super Bowl MVP, Hines Ward. Carolina Panthers Steve Smith -- the most productive receiver in the league last year. Prized Tennessee Titans free agent David Givens. And ballyhooed New England Patriots rookie Chad Jackson. Those are just a few of the big names laid low by tender hamstrings.
Carolina Panthers All-Pro wide receiver Steve Smith injured his left hamstring on the first day of this year's training camp.Of course, Owens' injury has gotten extra scrutiny for another reason. He plays for legendary hard-ass Bill Parcells. Coincidentally, hamstring expert Mackie Shilstone cites hard bottoms as one of the reasons so many wideouts get laid low.
According to Shilstone, rock-hard glutes, tight hips, taped ankles and the use of cleats for the first time in months makes players especially susceptible to hamstring injuries early in camp. And when they start running, it's a matter of time.
"In my opinion, (the root cause) is improper training to decelerate coming into and going out of breaks," said Shilstone. "Nobody teaches these players how to slow down. In an F-15 fighter jet, when it's landing on the deck of an aircraft carrier, the pilots come in and put their hooks down. When a receiver comes into a break at full speed and he's coming in like he's landing on a carrier deck, if he drops his hook and it misses, that's when the hamstring goes."
Based in New Orleans, Shilstone's worked with everyone from boxers Bernard Hopkins and Roy Jones Jr. to the Mets' Jose Reyes. He's worked with over 3,000 athletes in a 25-year career including scores of NFL players (mackieshilstone.com).
He laments the lack of attention paid to the root causes of hamstring injuries -- tight hips, poor running form and improper training techniques. If these were addressed proactively, Shilstone believes, hamstring injuries to wide receivers (and their defensive counterparts, the cornerbacks) would shrivel up.
"These players don't have hamstring problems, they have hip problems," he says. "Too much of this is caused by improper training and tight hips. I can take a football player with a hamstring problem, take his hip, work on that and get a 25 percent increase in his hamstring range of motion and I never touch the hamstring."
Hamstring injuries are more prevalent in the NFL than college because of the level of competition, Shilstone believes. He notes that the quick reaction time of NFL defensive backs makes it vital for receivers to enter and come out of breaks seamlessly.
"Playing those positions, players are in constant states of acceleration and deceleration," he explains. "Receivers are trained to load their spine (going into a break) and put their weight there. When they load with that heavy weight, if they have weak abdominal muscles, they sag down and the weight causes their lumbar spine to change its curve. Do that and the butt will tighten. When you do that, you tighten the hamstring.
"It's like a rubber band and there's no slack, especially when it's fatigued. Then, when you tighten the hamstring and dig your cleats in -- and they don't like wearing cleats in the offseason -- the cleat digging in changes the dynamics of the foot and ankle. You lose flex in your ankles and tight calf muscles will eventually go up to the hamstring."
To illustrate his point, Shilstone used a 9-yard comeback route as an example. The receiver bursts off the line at full speed, getting into the defensive back and forcing him to open his hips and come out of his backpedal. During that time, the receiver's hamstring is contracting with each step. Then the receiver stutter-steps to a stop, causing the hamstring to elongate. The receiver then turns, plants and prepares to push off and head back toward the line of scrimmage, making the hamstring contract again. For a player with fatigued muscles, poor form or those inflexible hips, the hamstring redlines.
Practically speaking, the hows and whys of these injuries matter less to their employers (and fans) than the when. As in, "When's he coming back?"
Whatever the answer, Shilstone warns, it's probably too soon. "Some might need two weeks. Some might need six months," he says. "But once it happens, reaggravating it is very common."
Which is what's already happened with Owens, who came back for three practices two weeks ago, complained he reinjured himself, and sat back down.
"I keep coming back to these F-15 fighter planes," says Shilstone. "You know, if you hit a fighter plane in the right spot with a .22-rifle, you can bring it down. Imagine that? A $15 million plane."
Somewhere in Texas, a white-haired head coach sneers agreement.
By Tom Curran
Seems like everybody's "got a hammy" these days. Tweaked, pulled, tender or torn, hamstring injuries are hamstringing teams in staggering numbers.
The most publicized hammy belongs to the Dallas Cowboys' Terrell Owens. T.O.'s convalescence has a leg up on the injuries suffered by his pass-catching colleagues because, well, he's T.O.
But there are others. There's last season's Super Bowl MVP, Hines Ward. Carolina Panthers Steve Smith -- the most productive receiver in the league last year. Prized Tennessee Titans free agent David Givens. And ballyhooed New England Patriots rookie Chad Jackson. Those are just a few of the big names laid low by tender hamstrings.
Carolina Panthers All-Pro wide receiver Steve Smith injured his left hamstring on the first day of this year's training camp.Of course, Owens' injury has gotten extra scrutiny for another reason. He plays for legendary hard-ass Bill Parcells. Coincidentally, hamstring expert Mackie Shilstone cites hard bottoms as one of the reasons so many wideouts get laid low.
According to Shilstone, rock-hard glutes, tight hips, taped ankles and the use of cleats for the first time in months makes players especially susceptible to hamstring injuries early in camp. And when they start running, it's a matter of time.
"In my opinion, (the root cause) is improper training to decelerate coming into and going out of breaks," said Shilstone. "Nobody teaches these players how to slow down. In an F-15 fighter jet, when it's landing on the deck of an aircraft carrier, the pilots come in and put their hooks down. When a receiver comes into a break at full speed and he's coming in like he's landing on a carrier deck, if he drops his hook and it misses, that's when the hamstring goes."
Based in New Orleans, Shilstone's worked with everyone from boxers Bernard Hopkins and Roy Jones Jr. to the Mets' Jose Reyes. He's worked with over 3,000 athletes in a 25-year career including scores of NFL players (mackieshilstone.com).
He laments the lack of attention paid to the root causes of hamstring injuries -- tight hips, poor running form and improper training techniques. If these were addressed proactively, Shilstone believes, hamstring injuries to wide receivers (and their defensive counterparts, the cornerbacks) would shrivel up.
"These players don't have hamstring problems, they have hip problems," he says. "Too much of this is caused by improper training and tight hips. I can take a football player with a hamstring problem, take his hip, work on that and get a 25 percent increase in his hamstring range of motion and I never touch the hamstring."
Hamstring injuries are more prevalent in the NFL than college because of the level of competition, Shilstone believes. He notes that the quick reaction time of NFL defensive backs makes it vital for receivers to enter and come out of breaks seamlessly.
"Playing those positions, players are in constant states of acceleration and deceleration," he explains. "Receivers are trained to load their spine (going into a break) and put their weight there. When they load with that heavy weight, if they have weak abdominal muscles, they sag down and the weight causes their lumbar spine to change its curve. Do that and the butt will tighten. When you do that, you tighten the hamstring.
"It's like a rubber band and there's no slack, especially when it's fatigued. Then, when you tighten the hamstring and dig your cleats in -- and they don't like wearing cleats in the offseason -- the cleat digging in changes the dynamics of the foot and ankle. You lose flex in your ankles and tight calf muscles will eventually go up to the hamstring."
To illustrate his point, Shilstone used a 9-yard comeback route as an example. The receiver bursts off the line at full speed, getting into the defensive back and forcing him to open his hips and come out of his backpedal. During that time, the receiver's hamstring is contracting with each step. Then the receiver stutter-steps to a stop, causing the hamstring to elongate. The receiver then turns, plants and prepares to push off and head back toward the line of scrimmage, making the hamstring contract again. For a player with fatigued muscles, poor form or those inflexible hips, the hamstring redlines.
Practically speaking, the hows and whys of these injuries matter less to their employers (and fans) than the when. As in, "When's he coming back?"
Whatever the answer, Shilstone warns, it's probably too soon. "Some might need two weeks. Some might need six months," he says. "But once it happens, reaggravating it is very common."
Which is what's already happened with Owens, who came back for three practices two weeks ago, complained he reinjured himself, and sat back down.
"I keep coming back to these F-15 fighter planes," says Shilstone. "You know, if you hit a fighter plane in the right spot with a .22-rifle, you can bring it down. Imagine that? A $15 million plane."
Somewhere in Texas, a white-haired head coach sneers agreement.