The Steelers will re-sign veteran cornerback Anthony Madison, a blast from the past. He’s coming aboard to help the secondary, which got beat up Sunday in the win in Cleveland.
Originally signed by the Steelers as an undrafted free agent out of Alabama in 2006, Madison has 81 tackles, one quarterback sack and one interception in 71 games with the Steelers, Tampa Bay Buccaneers, Cleveland Browns, Indianapolis Colts and Detroit Lions over the last six seasons.
Madison went to training camp with the Lions in 2011 and appeared in five games this season before he was released in November.
The Steelers could be without safety Ryan Clark due to a medical issue with playing at altitude and sustained injuries to cornerbacks Cortez Allen and Keenan Lewis on Sunday.
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Dave
January 3, 2012 at 9:18 am
Does Ryan Clark have a mild form of sickle cell disease? That’s about the only disease I can imagine that would cause issues with altitude.
DrGeorge
January 3, 2012 at 12:54 pm
[DAVE: Please note that this is my remembrance of the information previously disclosed in the media. I have no idea what Clark’s true medical condition is. So what follows is highly conjectural (an educated guess, in other words).]
Clark’s medical history is a private matter, of course, and I have only seen media references to his intolerance of the higher altitude at Denver.
All of us have experienced the effects of altitude sickness: due to the lower air pressure at altitude, there is a decrease in oxygen hemoglobin saturation. Most lowlanders feel a bit fatigued at high altitude until they adjust to it. Not everyone can adjust, and these people get headaches, become dizzy, and feel nauseous. Clark apparently has a blood dysgrasia (abnormality) of his hemoglobin that makes this normal reaction to thin air much more intense and possibly fatal. Remember, this is my interpretation of the media reports on his health; I don’t know his true condition.
Since Clark’s physicians advised him not to play in Denver before, I don’t know what might have changed that would allow him to play there now. The oxygen carrying capacity of hemoglobin at altitude is not likely to change very much over time. It is possible that other medical conditions or medications may have adversely affected his ability to play at altitude in the past, but one or more of them may no longer be a factor, prompting the re-evaluation. Or perhaps there is a new medication that would enable Clark to play now.
Unless Clark gets an unqualified medical clearance, the Steelers are wise in not playing him in Denver. We have adequate backup at Safety to cover for his absence, especially against Tebow.
However, Matt Loede’s article is about the Steelers re-signing Madison, a move necessitated by an injury to K. Lewis (that I hadn’t heard about before). I presume McFadden will replace Lewis in the lineup, and Madison will be his backup. McFadden has had his defeciencies in pass coverage in the past, but I don’t think Tebow has the skill to exploit them. But if we defeat Denver and move on in the playoffs, we will miss Lewis if he is not able to return. Both Brady and Flacco have the skill to make McFadden’s life miserable. Let’s hope it doesn’t come to that.