80% Healthy?!

Athletes recovering from injury are often self-proclaimed (or proclaimed by trainers or coaches) as X% healthy. What exactly does that mean?

In ESPN’s day two coverage of the NFL draft, Sao Paolantonio reported that a member of the Dolphins organization proclaimed Ted Ginn as 75-80%, but then said he would be unable to participate in next week’s spring practice, and would likely wear an ankle-protecting boot for at least 6 more weeks.

So, what’s 0%?...dead? Or maybe being dead can get as high as a 40%, so long as your bones and muscles are still intact, reserving a 0% for someone who is dead, cremated, sprinkled overboard across the Pacific, and ingested by plankton?

Seriously, you’re not 80% healthy (regarding one’s ability to play professional football), if you can’t play football!

In my opinion, an athlete whose injury prevents him from being able to play should be rated as 0% (or simply “injured”), and a 100% healthy rating should be given to someone who is unaffected by injury.

I’m reminded of Tom Barnsten’s infamous 8 out of 10 rating of The Incredible Hulk movie, which makes me assume that his scale would reserve a 0 out of 10 rating for burning in the fires of Hell for eternity.