Calvin Johnson says he had a concussion; Lions say no

Detroit Lions receiver Calvin Johnson admitted today that he suffered a concussion — yet returned to the game — when he took a helmet-to-helmet hit from Minnesota Vikings linebacker Chad Greenway in the Lions' last game.

Johnson was asked after practice today whether he had suffered one in Sept. 30 games at Ford Field.

"Yeah, yeah, he knocked me good," Johnson said. "You could tell. It was obvious."

Johnson looked visibly shaken and was slow to get up after Greenway hit him early in the fourth quarter. Johnson went to the sidelines and was tested for a concussion.

The NFL's protocol is for a player suspected of having a concussion to be removed from the game and tested by medical personnel on the sideline. If the team doctor determines he has a concussion, he is removed from the sideline and can't return.

Johnson went through a series of tests on the sideline and then returned to the game.

But coach Jim Schwartz said today there was nothing wrong with the concussion test that allowed Johnson to re-enter the game.

"Our evaluation was that he was not concussed," Schwartz said. "He was thoroughly checked. We're very strong in our evaluation. He was cleared to go back in the game, and he was on a protocol after that, and he was cleared then. We're very strong in our evaluation, and we are, as an organization, I think we have some credibility when it comes to concussions."

In an interview with WXYT-FM (97.1) this morning, Johnson hinted at his desire to keep playing through a concussion when he said: "It's a part of football. You get concussed, you gotta keep on playing."

After practice, Johnson tried to clarify those comments.

"What I meant when I said you've got to keep going is you can't be afraid to go over the middle," he said. "Not that if you're concussed that you've got to keep playing. We know we can't do that if we don't pass the test. I was just saying that you can't be afraid to keep on going over the middle and doing what we've been doing."

More than 3,000 former players are suing the NFL for failing to do enough to protect them against concussions. Johnson said he is not worried about long-term effects from his concussion.

"Nah," he said, "because I haven't had a lot of them."

Carlos Monarrez writes for the Detroit Free Press, a Gannett property.