Chiefs running back Priest Holmes may be on the verge of retirement due to a lump on his spinal cord that could lead to paralysis if he continues to play. KSHB NBC TV in Kansas City is reporting that Holmes has "very possibly" played his final game in a Chiefs uniform and could announce his retirement from the NFL as soon as Thursday. The team has not confirmed the local report, and as of Tuesday, head coach D*** Vermeil claimed he was uncertain about Holmes' status. "I don't have any information and sometimes I get upset that I don't have more information," Vermeil said in Tuesday's press conference. "But the information and communication system is in the right hands: Dr. Browne, our medical staff and our trainers, and the people he is consulting with."The injury may or may not be directly related to the mild head trauma he suffered in a violent collision with Chargers linebacker Shawne Merriman in week eight. Holmes visited a spine specialist in California last week before missing last Sunday's game against the Raiders. Early this week he sought a third opinion in Miami. Holmes also sustained a neck injury in week two that did not cause him to miss time but may be related. The 32-year-old running back has been unable to finish two of the last three seasons due to injury. Last year, a sprained knee cost him eight games, and in 2002, a hip injury that required surgery cost him the final two contests. He has undergone three knee surgeries in his playing career. Holmes has arguably been fantasy football's most productive player over the last four seasons and was the consensus top overall fantasy draft pick in 2003 and 2004. He set two single-season NFL scoring records?one for total touchdowns and one for rushing touchdowns?with 27 scores in the 2003 season. Even as injuries mounted, he has continued to cross the stripe at an unprecedented level. In his last 45 games, he has recorded an astounding 73 touchdowns. This is not the first time we've heard of Priest Holmes and retirement. After Ricky Williams walked out of the Dolphins locker room prior to the 2004-2005 seasons, Holmes admitted publicly that he too had considered retirement in the past and was not opposed to walking away from the game early. With an injury as serious as this reportedly is, Priest's decision may be an easy one. Holmes' possible retirement would leave the Chiefs starting running back job to three-year veteran Larry Johnson, a former first-round draft pick. In his first start of the season last Sunday against Oakland, Johnson rushed for 107 yards, collected 48 receiving yards, and scored two rushing touchdowns?including the game-winning one-yard plunge on the final play of the game. This production came as no surprise to veteran fantasy owners who watched Johnson dominate late last season while Holmes was on injured reserve with a knee injury. In the final five games of the season, Johnson averaged over 138 total yards and two touchdowns per game. "[Johnson's] been very impressive," Vermeil said on Tuesday. "We haven't had Willie Roaf or other things that make those numbers even more impressive, but he's been very impressive. He's made some long runs, he's made 60-yard runs on screens and, to me, he was Priest Holmes."Priest Holmes without the injuries? That sounds suspiciously like a top-five fantasy running back, and it's hard to argue that Johnson wouldn't be exactly that for the rest of the season. Even while getting just one of every three series, L.J. has more touchdowns than Willis McGahee, more yards than Holmes and Corey Dillon, and a per-carry average that ranks fifth in the NFL. He also may be launching his career as a starting back against two defenses?the Bills and the Texans?that statistically rank dead last in the NFL against the run. It's also worth nothing that the Chiefs passing game kicked into high gear when Holmes when down last season. Priest sustained the injury early in week nine, at which point tight end Tony Gonzalez went on to record four 100-yard games and wide receiver Eddie Kennison scored all eight of his touchdowns. Trent Green also tossed six 300-yard games in nine outings. At the risk of reducing Vermeil to a weeping mess, we'll conclude by wishing Holmes well. Although fantasy owners around the world would lament his sudden departure (to put it kindly), we'd much prefer to watch him walk away from the game rather than what could have been a tragic alternative. Needless to say, it's an absolute injustice to see Holmes potentially robbed of his career just days after Terrell Owens' idiocy only temporarily curbed his.Chiefs running back Priest Holmes may be on the verge of retirement due to a lump on his spinal cord that could lead to paralysis if he continues to play. KSHB NBC TV in Kansas City is reporting that Holmes has "very possibly" played his final game in a Chiefs uniform and could announce his retirement from the NFL as soon as Thursday. The team has not confirmed the local report, and as of Tuesday, head coach D*** Vermeil claimed he was uncertain about Holmes' status. "I don't have any information and sometimes I get upset that I don't have more information," Vermeil said in Tuesday's press conference. "But the information and communication system is in the right hands: Dr. Browne, our medical staff and our trainers, and the people he is consulting with."The injury may or may not be directly related to the mild head trauma he suffered in a violent collision with Chargers linebacker Shawne Merriman in week eight. Holmes visited a spine specialist in California last week before missing last Sunday's game against the Raiders. Early this week he sought a third opinion in Miami. Holmes also sustained a neck injury in week two that did not cause him to miss time but may be related. The 32-year-old running back has been unable to finish two of the last three seasons due to injury. Last year, a sprained knee cost him eight games, and in 2002, a hip injury that required surgery cost him the final two contests. He has undergone three knee surgeries in his playing career. Holmes has arguably been fantasy football's most productive player over the last four seasons and was the consensus top overall fantasy draft pick in 2003 and 2004. He set two single-season NFL scoring records?one for total touchdowns and one for rushing touchdowns?with 27 scores in the 2003 season. Even as injuries mounted, he has continued to cross the stripe at an unprecedented level. In his last 45 games, he has recorded an astounding 73 touchdowns. This is not the first time we've heard of Priest Holmes and retirement. After Ricky Williams walked out of the Dolphins locker room prior to the 2004-2005 seasons, Holmes admitted publicly that he too had considered retirement in the past and was not opposed to walking away from the game early. With an injury as serious as this reportedly is, Priest's decision may be an easy one. Holmes' possible retirement would leave the Chiefs starting running back job to three-year veteran Larry Johnson, a former first-round draft pick. In his first start of the season last Sunday against Oakland, Johnson rushed for 107 yards, collected 48 receiving yards, and scored two rushing touchdowns?including the game-winning one-yard plunge on the final play of the game. This production came as no surprise to veteran fantasy owners who watched Johnson dominate late last season while Holmes was on injured reserve with a knee injury. In the final five games of the season, Johnson averaged over 138 total yards and two touchdowns per game. "[Johnson's] been very impressive," Vermeil said on Tuesday. "We haven't had Willie Roaf or other things that make those numbers even more impressive, but he's been very impressive. He's made some long runs, he's made 60-yard runs on screens and, to me, he was Priest Holmes."Priest Holmes without the injuries? That sounds suspiciously like a top-five fantasy running back, and it's hard to argue that Johnson wouldn't be exactly that for the rest of the season. Even while getting just one of every three series, L.J. has more touchdowns than Willis McGahee, more yards than Holmes and Corey Dillon, and a per-carry average that ranks fifth in the NFL. He also may be launching his career as a starting back against two defenses?the Bills and the Texans?that statistically rank dead last in the NFL against the run. It's also worth nothing that the Chiefs passing game kicked into high gear when Holmes when down last season. Priest sustained the injury early in week nine, at which point tight end Tony Gonzalez went on to record four 100-yard games and wide receiver Eddie Kennison scored all eight of his touchdowns. Trent Green also tossed six 300-yard games in nine outings. At the risk of reducing Vermeil to a weeping mess, we'll conclude by wishing Holmes well. Although fantasy owners around the world would lament his sudden departure (to put it kindly), we'd much prefer to watch him walk away from the game rather than what could have been a tragic alternative. Needless to say, it's an absolute injustice to see Holmes potentially robbed of his career just days after Terrell Owens' idiocy only temporarily curbed his.http://www.fanball.com/fb/article.cfm/ID.4981
Please leave a link to your sorces Joe.That would suck for KC. Homes is a great RB but if he needs to then he should retire rather then basicly kill himself and keep playing.
I've been looking for a link over the past few minutes but I can't find a single source that says this is a possibility.Assuming that it's true, though, this would really hurt my fantasy team.
Who cares about your fantasy team? This guy is going to retire of a serious injury and all you care about is your fantasy team!Anyways, great player, wish him all the best.
That sucks, he was so good and now his career might just be over. I hate when you see a really good player play then all of a sudden he gotta retire because of a serious injury. At least it wasn't so early in his career.
Here is a link on NFL.com stating that the Chiefs are denying the rumors:http://www.nfl.com/teams/story/KC/9033455
I hate to see something like this happen to such a great guy. If he's never gonna play again, it was great to have the opportunity to see him play for all these years and I hope him the best.
The Chiefs are lucky that they have LJ to step right in for him, most teams don't have 2 guys that are capable of carrying the load. That really sucks for him with his injuries though.
