Austin Collie burst onto the scene last year for the Indianapolis Colts and quickly earned the trust and confidence of All-Universe QB,Peyton Manning. Collie was a 4th round draft pick out of BYU and thanks in part to his QB and the system, took quick advantage of his opportunities. The 2010 season has been a disappointing and scary one for Collie and the Colts.

Going into this weekend, the Colts were struggling mightily ending their 7 season streak of winning at least 12 games each year. Part of the issue has been injuries and Collie was one of the significant injuries sustained throughout the season. Collie missed the past 3 games and 4 out of the last 5 games due to post-concussion syndrome. Manning was excited to get his WR back for a must-win game against the division leading Jaguars and early on it showed. Manning hit Collie for 2 first half TD's but later in the first half Collie was hit hard, and again, left the game with a concussion.

Collie has shown great promise and is in the perfect system to allow him to flourish but his head injuries are a serious concern. As everyone is aware, the NFL has drastically increased the standards and procedures as it relates to the treatment and diagnosis of head injuries as well as the attempt to prevent them. The last concussion Collie suffered was actually flagged for unnecessary roughness as he was hit hard by two Eagles DB's.

If this were a decade ago, Collie would undoubtedly have missed much fewer games and we wouldn't be discussing the sad possibility of a promising career being cut short. But the reality is that with the higher standards for treating and diagnosing head injuries as well as the higher standards put in place prior to allowing players to get back onto the field, Collie's career could very well be in serious jeopardy.

Each and every NFL player undergoes a "Baseline" test that measures various performance criteria that is used for comparison after a head injury. After experiencing a head injury, a player must first be asymptomatic and then they must re-take the "Baseline" tests and score comparably to their initial test that was taken prior to any injury. As we've seen in the short period of time that this new testing has been in place, this can sometimes take quite some time. In addition, an independent Dr. (someone not paid or employed by the team) must sign off on the player's final test results and allow them to return to action.

Aaron Rodgers was unable to pass his tests and is forced to miss a critical game at New England a week after suffering his second concussion of the season and there are whispers about the long-term ability of him to stay on the field as well. For Collie, due to the number of concussions he's suffered and the number of games he's forced to miss, this is a very scary sign. He's obviously not fully recovered from his previous concussions and despite sitting out 3 consecutive games, he was either not ready to play or he has the worst luck on the planet.

With the increased scrutiny associated with head injuries, all players and teams are extremely conservative and slow to bring players back to ensure their long-term safety. The Colts certainly did not rush Collie back and despite their best efforts, he suffered yet another head injury in his first half of play. This is extremely troubling and worrisome and I just hope that by shutting him down for the rest of the season that he can fully recover and return to have a long and prosperous career starting next season.