No Answers, Just Questions

As teammates of Kenechi Udeze still try to let the news of his leukemia diagnosis sink in, we're finding out that the wait on determining the severity and form of his cancer are taking a long time because there are several variants to the disease and that there are more questions being asked without answers being able to be provided.

A day after the news began to settle in that Vikings DE Kenechi Udeze has a form or leukemia, the question being asked from Winter Park to work water coolers throughout Minnesota is: How serious is it?

The answer is that, at this point, few if any people know. There are two primary strains of leukemia – chronic and acute – and there are several sub-forms within each group. Some forms of leukemia are extremely aggressive, while others are considerably more treatable. However, one thing that can pretty much be agreed upon is the treatment needed to try to put the disease into remission takes six months or longer in most instances.

The waiting is often the hardest part, because it is believed that Udeze’s condition drew red flags sometime around or after his end-of-season physical with the team. If that’s the case, he may have known for as much as a month that something was wrong and has known he tested positive for leukemia for a couple of weeks.

Clearly the thoughts and prayers of Vikings fans everywhere are with Udeze, his wife and his baby. But for now, it’s a waiting game and there are likely to be many answers in the coming days and weeks … and probably more questions.

WEDNESDAY NOTES
* In a statement on his website, Udeze’s college coach, Pete Carroll, posted the following statement: “Kenechi’s got a big battle on his hands. We’ve been talking with him and will continue to support him and send our good wishes and prayers his way. We know he’s going to through strong and compete against this disease like a warrior – like he has always competed.”
* Maybe Brad Childress was right after all on the Dwight Smith situation. Smith, who was charged with misdemeanor marijuana possession stemming from a police stop outside a Twin Cities strip club Dec. 13, was not immediately disciplined by Childress. He said he needed to gather more information before making a decision. For many fans, they thought the move was disingenuous – saying that injuries in the secondary made more of a difference than anything else relating to discipline and that Childress was no Columbo. However, the charges were dropped and Smith pleaded guilty to a charge of obstructing traffic, which carries a $200 fine. Whether Smith is going to be with the Vikings next year is still up in the air, but it would appear Childress was right in not making a rush to judgment at the time.
* A couple of potential veteran quarterbacks might get a look from the Vikings. Trent Green was released yesterday by the Dolphins, and, with a little more than two weeks remaining until the start of free agency, the Redskins have made no contract offer to Todd Collins, making it appear as though he will be allowed to test the open market.
* Rumors have circulated that Bill Parcells is reaching out to Keyshawn Johnson to make a return to the NFL with him in Miami. Many fans would agree that anything that gets him out of a broadcast capacity would be a plus for all involved.
* Any hope Vikings fan might have of getting OLB/DE Terrell Suggs have more than likely been dashed. Word out of Ravens headquarters is that if Suggs isn’t signed to a long term deal between now and the end of the month, they’ll put the franchise tag on him, which would give him a one-year deal worth a little under $8.1 million.
* From the “It’s Never Too Early For Next Year” Department comes this: the Redskins and Colts have been informed that they will be playing in the Hall of Fame Game – the first game of the season – Aug. 3 in Canton.