SANTA CLARA, Calif. (AP) - Contrary to the popular beliefs about Ahmed Plummer, the San Francisco 49ers' high-priced, injury-plagued cornerback says he actually does care about playing football.
And Plummer has plenty of time to think about what's important to him these days.
He seems unlikely to play again this season, thanks to an ankle injury from Week 3 that hasn't been fixed by surgery or rehabilitation. What's more, he seems unlikely to return to the 49ers next year, given his hefty salary-cap figure and his residence in the back of coach Mike Nolan's doghouse.
Plummer finally spoke out Thursday about his injuries and the organization's treatment of him. His eyes were red, indicating strong emotions within the normally quiet former Ohio State star who was a dependable starter in his first four NFL seasons, but hasn't been the same since getting his $25 million payday in March 2004.
``It's been difficult, just for the fact that it's been two years in a row,'' Plummer said. ``This is not how I planned it, or how I saw the season when I came back here. That's what makes it really hard. ... I just want to play football. You start to see how fast a career goes when you don't play. This means two years in a row where I don't play.''
Indeed, Plummer has played just nine games in the two seasons since he got his five-year contract. After missing just three games in his first four seasons, the former first-round draft pick got a two-tiered, $11 million signing bonus from the 49ers when he agreed to return to the club.
That's about $1.22 million for each game he's played since then, not even including his small base salary.
The contract was above the going rate, even for a solid NFL cornerback - and now the deal is seen as one of the biggest embarrassments in fired general manager Terry Donahue's list of questionable decisions.
And Plummer has been bugged by injuries ever since. He developed problems with his shoulder and neck after the first six games of last season, when the 49ers went 2-14, and never returned to the lineup despite the weekly hopes of former coach Dennis Erickson.
Plummer started out well for Nolan, reclaiming his starting job in camp and playing in the first three games. But he needed surgery to remove bone chips from his ankle after a loss to Dallas on Sept. 25 - and 2 1/2 months later, he still hasn't been able to return.
Nolan clearly has grown increasingly frustrated with Plummer, who went to Miami on Monday to seek a second opinion on his injury. His ankle still is inflamed, and Plummer acknowledged more surgery might be required to remove more chips.
``Right now I would anticipate that would be 50-50 at best,'' Nolan said when asked to gauge Plummer's chances of playing again this season.
Tellingly, Nolan said he hasn't spoken to Plummer since ``before the Chicago game, when he decided to play.''
Plummer eventually decided against returning last month for that game against the Bears. He was in uniform as an emergency cornerback two weeks ago for a game at Tennessee, but even pain-blocking pills didn't make him feel good enough to contribute.
Plummer contradicts those who believe he has lost his taste for the hitting and pain of football. He says he simply wants to return at full strength.
``I want to know what's going on with my body,'' Plummer said. ``That's my right, and I think that I should know what's going on. I look on the Internet, probably like a lot of people, and I try to learn, try to study, try to figure out what's the best thing at this point.''
The 49ers (2-10) have survived without him, with Bruce Thornton excelling as a starter after San Francisco picked him up off Dallas' waiver wire earlier in the season. Thornton and Shawntae Spencer have been solid on the corners despite a litany of injuries to the Niners' safeties.
Plummer still attends meetings with his teammates, even if everyone with the 49ers doesn't seem warm to him.
``I can't really comment on that,'' Plummer said when asked if the organization has supported him. ``I think Dr. (John) York, he's been there as far as asking how I'm doing and stuff like that, and I appreciate that. I can't really comment on everybody. That's something you would have to ask them.''
Plummer is due to make $5.5 million in base salary in 2006, and releasing him would create a small salary-cap savings while clearing him off the books in 2007 and 2008. Given the play of Thornton and Spencer, the decision seems easy - but not to Plummer, who still feels invested in the 49ers.
``That's not my decision to make,'' he said. ``Do I want to be here? Yeah, I want to be here. With these guys, how can you not love these guys with all that we've been through together? Yeah, I'm going through this right now, but in a sense, we're all going through something right now. It's pretty hard.''Copyright © 2005 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. The information contained in the AP News report may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed without the prior written authority of The Associated Press.
