Clark Not Sure if He Will be Able to Play in Denver

In a bizarre case, the Steelers are not sure if safety Ryan Clark is going to be able to go Monday November 9th when the team plays in Denver. It goes back to Clark getting ill after the October 21st game in Denver two seasons ago.

Clark didn’t play the rest of the 07 season after he got sick in Denver. He was hospitalized overnight in Denver, and his condition worsened after he returned to Pittsburgh. Then he had to have his spleen and gall bladder removed, and he lost more than 30 pounds before finally regaining his strength about three months later. Doctors told him his sickle-cell trait was aggravated by the high altitude in Denver and caused a serious blood disorder.

For now, the Steelers safety is planning to go to Denver for the Monday night game, but isn’t certain if he will be in uniform. He plans to talk to doctors during the Steelers’ bye week and again next week, if necessary. “We’ll figure it out. We haven’t figured it out yet,” Clark said. “We don’t know yet.”

Clark said previously he wouldn’t play in Denver again unless he was certain there would be no medical problems if he did. He has undergone extensive testing during the last two years, receives six injections a year and treats any infection carefully.