Ryan Clark: 'My life is more important than playing in Denver'

November 6, 8:23 AMPittsburgh Sports ExaminerMatt Pawlikowski

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Ryan Clark wants to play against Denver, he's been cleared to play, but the decision is unknown.

AP/File Photo

PITTSBURGH – He has been cleared by his doctors to play in the Monday night game against Denver. But while he wants to play, his teammates hope he doesn’t suite up and all indications are pointing to the fact that Steeler coach Mike Tomlin, who has the final say will deactivate for the game.

But as of now, when it comes to Ryan Clark that’s where it stands.

“I want it to be done guys, I really do,” Clark said. “We’ll see. I’ve been cleared to play, everybody knows that, but it’s still a tough decision, Coach Tomlin briefed you on that. you, It’s still a tough decision, obviously in this game everyone gets a little ego, and I want to go there, not so much to beat the Broncos but because I’ve come full circle and I want to go there and play.”

The last time the Steelers played in Denver in 2007, the altitude caused Clark's blood to attack his spleen, then his gall bladder. It stemmed from complications he had the previous time he played in Denver, when he was with the Redskins. He lost over 30 pounds and is now forced to take six vaccinations each year.

Even worse, it almost proved fatal.

“No one has said it is 100 percent, and obviously that is what makes it my decision and makes it tough,” Clark said. “Because I don’t have a spleen anymore I can’t get a spleen infection again and none of them have said if you go you are going to die either. But just like last time with those opinions, I spent a month with them where they couldn’t figure out what was wrong with me either.”

So a bigger question is why if he’s told he won’t be playing would he even want to make the trip to Denver and its high altitude and take a risk of something happening again that could jeopardize not only his career, but also his life.

“I’ve been in Denver altitude, and actually had to stay overnight there because of flight delays and cancellations, so it’s not that I can’t go to Denver” Clark said. “And obviously if I’ve been cleared to play it’s not like I can’t stand on the sidelines and get on the plane.”

Obviously a player with the tenacity of Clark wants to play in the game, but he say that it is a family matter.

“My wife has been praying on it, she believes god brought us out of it,” Clark said. “But it would be hard for me to play if she didn’t want me to go play, the decision would be done. If she told me two weeks ago, or before the season, I wouldn’t be playing and having this conversation.”

He did add this though.

“ It’s a tough decision to go home and tell your wife who has been worried for a year that you are going and it’s tough for me to tell the guys I don’t want to play even if I have been cleared,” Clark said. “This is a decision I am going to make with my family and obviously with coach Tomlin, he’s going to have the final say.”

When a reporter blamed Tomlin for not making a quick decision, Clark got irritated and said there has been no pressure from anyone.

“First off, don’t put words in my mouth, let me talk. I don’t deserve that and respect you all and expect you to respect me,” Clark said. “What I have said is I can’t be forced to play but if I decide to play and if coach Tomlin feels there is no need or he is not comfortable with the decision, he does have the right to tell me I can’t play. So it’s not coach Tomlin’ decision, it is mine, but he is the coach of this football team and he will have his input.”

Clark did add this though which seems to make it clearer that Tomlin is apparently leaning on deactivating him for the game.

“Obviously my life is more important than playing in Denver,” Clark said. “So we will just go from there.”