Dallas Cowboys: Travis Frederick medical update

The Dallas Cowboys All-Pro starting center, Travis Frederick is currently dealing with a rare medical condition. Let’s examine the situation.

The Dallas Cowboys and their fans will be praying for center Travis Frederick as he has been diagnosed with a rare nerve disorder. This news came as a bit of a shock to everyone who follows football as Frederick has been one of the best centers in the NFL over the last four years. What seemed to be a nagging injury has officially turned into a major issue for Frederick and the Dallas Cowboys football team, let’s take a look at the situation.

Frederick was diagnosed with Guillain-Barre syndrome or GBS which a disorder that affects your nerves. GBS is a particularly rare autoimmune disease that seemingly can stem from anything as minor as influenza, eating undercooked chicken, surgery, recent immunizations, or even influenza vaccinations to the Zika Virus. You are at greater risk for this syndrome if you are a man and if you are a young adult as it is more common in those demographics.

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GBS will force your immune system to start attacking your nerves. The damaged caused by this can hinder your brain from receiving signals from the nerves affected and that can cause numbness, weakness, and even paralysis. There is no known cure for GBS, however, it can be treated by a series of blood transfusions, plasma exchanges, and eventually physical therapy.

The average recovery time is a few months however it can take anywhere from a few weeks to years so the timeframe is relatively cloudy. There is no way to tell when Frederick will return to the football field but everyone here at SportDFW wishes Frederick a speedy recovery as he battles this rare condition.

How will this actually affect the Dallas Cowboys on the football field?

Well, in a few ways, but mainly it appears as if Joe Looney will become the Dallas Cowboys starting center for the weeks (potentially months) to come. If Frederick is not on the football field by Week One of the regular season Looney will likely be the player the Cowboys turn to. He has had a very solid training camp and appears to be trending in the right direction however it is unknown just how productive he will be heading into Week One.

That in itself is a problem because Looney was expected to play more of a depth role and with him starting, the Cowboys are very short on backup offensive linemen. When you add the fact that Zack Martin could also potentially miss Week One that just doubles the damage to this offensive line.

It is hard to believe that only a few weeks ago the Dallas Cowboys offensive line appeared to be fixed and ready to put on a show, how time is a cruel mistress. The second wave of free agency will occur as teams trim their rosters down from 90-53 so expect Dallas to be heavily involved in acquiring some of those players.

I would also expect that several trades could be in motion prior to Week One as it is hard to imagine a scenario in which the Dallas Cowboys can land a new starter at the center and safety positions. Only time will tell what the Cowboys will do to remedy this situation. 

Feel better Travis

• Published on 08/23/2018 at 12:00 PM
• Last updated at 08/23/2018 at 05:20 AM