I know that there’s not an official rule which prohibits injured players from traveling with their team, but it sure does seem like a very popular unwritten rule. I don’t really understand the benefit of not allowing a player to travel. True, he can rest his injuries, but if they are healthy enough to attend home games, then they should be allowed to fly with the team. I even think that suspended players should be able to attend meetings, workouts, etc.

The death of Sean Taylor has brought this unwritten rule into the spotlight for me. Had he been with the team, he would still be with us. According to ESPN, the murderers didn’t think Taylor was at home. They probably thought he was at the game. Obviously, this is an extreme result of not allowing Taylor to travel with the team, but with so much money invested in these athletes and a need to nurture some of them, I think that keeping them amongst their “family” during the season is best for all parties. Brett Favre even stated earlier this year that he believed Koren Robinson should be allowed to join the Packers before his suspension was completed.

In the case of a situation like Michael Vick and Pacman Jones, when there are legal circumstances, I can understand a policy to distant them from the team. That is probably best for everyone, but leaving a player in the cold because of an injury, drug problem, alcoholism, etc. seems to be a contrary edict amongst the brotherhood of the National Football League.