Lions' Jahvid Best still wants to return to football
Detroit — The door to Lions running back Jahvid Best's NFL return is still open.
Best hasn't played since Week 6 of 2011 due to lingering symptoms from concussions, but said he plans to keep fighting.
"They told me I can't play this season, but they didn't shut the door, and so me, as a person, I'm a glass-half-full kind of guy, and if you don't shut the door, then there's still a way," Best said. "I'm still working. I'm still doing everything I can, and as long as they don't shut the door, you'll see me back out there doing what I do best.
Best spoke to a crowd of about 500 people at Ford Field for the Lions' annual Courage House Dinner. He received the Ed Block Courage Award, given to a player on each NFL team for overcoming some off-field adversity.
In addition to Best, NFL commissioner Roger Goodell delivered a keynote address and told the crowd about the league's decision to not suspend Lions defensive tackle Ndamukong Suh for kicking Houston quarterback Matt Schaub in the groin during their Thanksgiving game.
"They've been very thoughtful about (the review)," he said before the dinner. "They're still going through the process of whether it should be a fine."
Goodell also spoke about the rule that upheld a Justin Forsett rushing touchdown that helped the Texans beat the Lions on Thursday and said the league plans to look at the rule before the postseason. He said the initial ruling was an "obvious error."
"When we make any rule changes, it's important to look at the unintended consequences of those rules, and that's why the competition committee spends weeks evaluating these (rules) and trying to evaluate will it have an impact on the game that we're not anticipating," he said.
Lions president Tom Lewand made a light-hearted joke about the rules before the dinner.
"All I know is we changed out all the cloth napkins from red to blue tonight," he said.
In regards to Best, Goodell said the league will continue researching head injuries, but the problem is there are still a lot of unknowns.
"We all have to do our part to do whatever we can to avoid these injuries," Goodell said. "Also, when they do occur to identify them and make sure proper medical care and the protocols are followed, and then that we manage them conservatively."
After starting the season on the physically unable to perform list, Best failed neurological exams in October, and the team decided to shut him down.
"We'll see where it goes," Lewand said of Best's future. "Tonight's a night to celebrate."
Lions coach Jim Schwartz said Best is deserving of the award and has been an inspiration to the team with how he's handled the difficult situation.
"He's fighting an invisible opponent in a lot of ways. You can't always rehab, and you can't do anything other than try to be patient and try to be positive."
The East Side Athletic Club of Baltimore annually awards The Ed Block Courage Award to a player from each team and all 32 convene at a post-season event.
Also at the dinner, former Lion Doug English (1975-79, 81-85) was given the Ricky Sandoval Award, which honors someone who has made contributions in sports and in the community.
