Eric Fisher: Chiefs’ OT Suffers Mild Concussion, The Struggle Continues

Melina Vastola-USA TODAY Sports

There’s a lot of pressure that comes along with being the first overall pick in the NFL draft, and the transition from college to the NFL is not always graceful. Chiefs’offensive tackle Eric Fisher personifies that struggle right now.

He suffered through a few minor bumps and bruises in the preseason, and his issues during the first quarter of the regular season have been well documented.

Things are great in Kansas City right now, but it seems as if the rough waters will continue for Fisher, even though his team is riding high at 4-0. Per Mike Florio of ProFootballTalk.com, Fisher suffered a concussion during Kansas City’s 31-7 win over the New York Giants:

"While the term “mild” concussion tends to understate the severity of brain injuries, concussions have degrees.  And in the case of Chiefs right tackle Eric Fisher, his concussion is, per a league source, mild.But it’s still a concussion, and the league now treats concussions very seriously, once the diagnosis is applied.Fisher exited Sunday’s 31-7 win over the Giants with the head injury, and did not return.The first overall pick in the 2013 draft, Fisher won’t be back until he gets clearance from an independent neurologist to practice and then to play."

Concussions are a huge deal in sports nowadays, and the NFL has been spearheading the movement towards awareness. As Florio pointed out, even though this is just a mild concussion, Fisher is still going to have to past tests and jump through hoops in order to get back on the field.

In the meantime, he’ll be missing out on valuable snaps, and at this point of his young career, that may be the worse news to come out of this diagnosis.

Hopefully he recovers swiftly from this mild concussion and can get back onto the field soon enough. The Chiefs are going to need their No. 1 overall pick to get better, and you can’t help your team when you’re in street clothes on the sideline.

Of all the positions, it could be argued that linemen have the hardest transition from level to level. Whether it be high school to college, or college to the NFL. Fisher’s transition to the NFL hasn’t been great thus far, and unfortunately, at least for now—it doesn’t seem to be getting any easier.