Mike Tomlin probably saved Ryan Clark’s life
A. Isaac 
Pittsburgh Steelers coach Mike Tomlin made a decision, a decision that will ultimately save one of his player’s lives. Ryan Clark, suffers from a sickle cell trait that makes it hard for him to play in high altitude. The last time Clark traveled to Denver, it almost cost him his life as he lost his spleen and gallbladder because of a lack of oxygen to his organs.
Despite that, Clark wanted to suit up for the playoff game this weekend.
“I mean, everybody knows I want to play and I would have played,” he told ESPN. “I talked to my doctors and we actually had a plan in place for me to play. All things pointed to me going until (Tomlin) told me I can’t. He said he wouldn’t have let his son play and so I’m not playing either.”
Over the last year, we’ve seen several incidents where a team disregards one of their player’s health. Colt McCoy’s concussion being the most recent. We also saw a situation at Notre Dame in which a student manager fell off a scissor lift while videotaping a practice. A practice that occurred in windy and unsafe conditions.
Ultimately, the decision to not play Clark will have far reaching consequences. The Steelers may lose the game, players may lose bonuses, the NFL may lose one of their more marketable teams. But none of that is as important as Ryan Clark’s life. A life saved by a great coach and even better man in Mike Tomlin.
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