Jason Pierre-Paul is not the only bizarre Stateside injury, Alex Ferguson explains

Jason Pierre-Paul's injury was bizarre but it's not the first - Alex Ferguson recalls some US damage...

If there was a Sporting Silly Injury Awards, Jason Pierre-Paul definitely topped the list. 

Pierre-Paul was injured setting off fireworks at his house in Florida to celebrate America’s Independence Day. For a guy who earns $7.7m per year, he could have got someone else to set off the Crossette, Kamuro and Peony, couldn’t he?

Of course, he didn’t think that maybe fireworks might be dangerous and, as a NFL player who needed his hands to make a living, this might not be a such a good idea.

Anyway, there was an accident. He ended up in hospital, lost his right index finger and there’s other flesh damage (I’d love to go into more gory detail, but I don’t want to fall ill. I’m still recovering from watching the Nathan’s Hot Dog Eating Contest).

And although he and his family were traumatised, it’s probably fair to say that a lot of people are too. After negotiating hard for a long-term agreement with the Giants, the team pulled their $60m contract offer. He hadn’t signed a deal yet. That’s a lot of money off the table for agents, family, friends and fireworks companies.

I think the Giants will be tougher in their re-negotiation this time around, with Pierre-Paul having to drop at least $5m off his asking price.

US comedians Andy Ruther and Joe Praino invoked a little Entourage and Game Of Thrones on their podcast when they said: “Pay one of your friends to light the fireworks. I would sit on my iron throne and get people to do this.”

They added: “You are a professional athlete. The only thing that really matters to your profession is your body. So don’t do anything that could possibly injure your body, whether it’s lighting fireworks off in your hand, driving a motorcycle or whatever. You see these guys do this stuff all the time.”

The motorcycle reference was for Pittsburgh Steelers quarterback Ben Roethlisberger, who broke his upper and lower jaw in an accident in 2006. He had been warned of the dangers of driving without a helmet – but ignored it.

He was also riding without the correct licence, invoking a two-year motorcycle ban. We can only hope that part of his contract extension with the Terrible Towels was: ‘No motorcycles’.

Pierre-Paul and Roethlisberger aren’t the only ones to have had silly injuries. Great players in other sports have come a cropper too. Baseball player Moises Alou got hurt falling off a treadmill.

The Orlando Sentinel reminds us that MLB pitcher Adam Eaton stabbed himself opening Christmas presents; NASCAR racer Jimmie Johnson rode on the top of a golf cart and broke his wrist and, my favourite, MLB Hall of Famer John Smoltz burned himself ironing a shirt… while wearing it.