Stiff-Necked Cowboy Rivera Hopes to Play
By STEPHEN HAWKINS AP Sports Writer
IRVING, Texas (AP) -- Cowboys offensive lineman Marco Rivera hopes to play this week even though his neck was so stiff and sore Tuesday that he couldn't turn his head without rotating his whole upper body.
Rivera strained his neck after being flipped and landing on his head near the end of Dallas' 35-7 loss to the Redskins. He spent Sunday night in a Washington-area hospital, but returned home the next day after tests and scans were negative.
"I'm stiff right now," Rivera said Tuesday, no longer wearing a neck brace. "The doctor said I'm going to feel the effects for a couple of days. ... It's just more of a muscle ache and having a really, really sore neck."
Rivera has started 113 consecutive games - 120 including playoffs with Green Bay before signing a $20 million, five-year contract with Dallas in March. The three-time Pro Bowl guard said he's going to do "everything possible" to be ready to play Saturday at Carolina.
"I've been known to do those kind of things before," Rivera said. "I've played with bad knees and broken hands, and stuff like that. I'm just going to take the same attitude."
Rivera said he pulled to block on a running play, and got flipped when a defender went through his legs. He was taken off the field on a stretcher.
"It was kind of a strange feeling, it went down my arm, and had the feeling of pins and needles in my hands," Rivera said. "But I never lost any kind of sensation anywhere."
Rivera's contract included a $9 million signing bonus that the 10-year veteran offered to repay when he injured his back last spring. He had surgery and returned in time for training camp.
The Cowboys on Tuesday placed linebacker Micheal Barrow on injured reserve because of a partially torn quadriceps muscle that will require surgery. Barrow was signed Nov. 28 after Dat Nguyen went on injured reserve, and had one tackle in his two games, the last against the Redskins in which he got hurt.
IRVING, Texas (AP) -- Cowboys offensive lineman Marco Rivera hopes to play this week even though his neck was so stiff and sore Tuesday that he couldn't turn his head without rotating his whole upper body.
Rivera strained his neck after being flipped and landing on his head near the end of Dallas' 35-7 loss to the Redskins. He spent Sunday night in a Washington-area hospital, but returned home the next day after tests and scans were negative.
"I'm stiff right now," Rivera said Tuesday, no longer wearing a neck brace. "The doctor said I'm going to feel the effects for a couple of days. ... It's just more of a muscle ache and having a really, really sore neck."
Rivera has started 113 consecutive games - 120 including playoffs with Green Bay before signing a $20 million, five-year contract with Dallas in March. The three-time Pro Bowl guard said he's going to do "everything possible" to be ready to play Saturday at Carolina.
"I've been known to do those kind of things before," Rivera said. "I've played with bad knees and broken hands, and stuff like that. I'm just going to take the same attitude."
Rivera said he pulled to block on a running play, and got flipped when a defender went through his legs. He was taken off the field on a stretcher.
"It was kind of a strange feeling, it went down my arm, and had the feeling of pins and needles in my hands," Rivera said. "But I never lost any kind of sensation anywhere."
Rivera's contract included a $9 million signing bonus that the 10-year veteran offered to repay when he injured his back last spring. He had surgery and returned in time for training camp.
The Cowboys on Tuesday placed linebacker Micheal Barrow on injured reserve because of a partially torn quadriceps muscle that will require surgery. Barrow was signed Nov. 28 after Dat Nguyen went on injured reserve, and had one tackle in his two games, the last against the Redskins in which he got hurt.
posted by The Gryphon at 8:41 PM
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