“At some point physically, we just have to attend to things,” Lewis added. “It’s unfortunate. He’ll make a decision here coming up in the next few days, week or so, and attend to it and get himself ready for next year.”
Lewis said he expects Burfict to be on a normal schedule for 2015 if he elects to have the surgery.
Burfict injured the knee early in the Oct. 26 victory against Baltimore. He finished the game and underwent arthroscopic surgery Oct. 29. The team had hoped he would miss only a couple of games, but Burfict has been unable to fully recover.
Lewis dismissed the notion that the linebacker’s inability to get back on the field had anything to do with desire or the four-year, $20 million contract he signed in August.
“That had nothing to do with it,” Lewis said. “When he was able to go out and do what you can do as a professional linebacker, he was ready to go. It’s a hard thing to deal with if you’re a guy who’s never been injured before, and you’ve got this injury and it doesn’t seem that significant.
“He basically finished the (Baltimore) game,” Lewis continued. “You’re on that adrenaline, and when you come off of that, and it (the injury) is the real deal, then you need to consider the options.”
Little laugh: Cleveland Browns quarterback Johnny Manziel said during Wednesday's conference call with Cincinnati reporters that he was not offended by Lewis calling him a midget and that he laughed off the comment.
“I read it on Twitter,” the 6-foot Manziel said. “Honestly, it is kind of one of those things you have to laugh off a little bit. They think I’m short. I’m obviously a little undersized. At the same time, I didn’t think ever, at any point, that Coach Lewis meant that in a very negative way.
“It never really got to me or upset me at all,” he continued. “I kind of just went about my day and moved on.”
Asked if he had ever been called a midget before, Manziel said “No, sir.”
Guest questions: Cleveland television personality Lil' John Rinaldi was at Lewis' press conference. And while the 4-foot-3 Rinaldi didn't address Lewis' "midget" comment, he kicked things off with a height-related question comparing Manziel and Brian Hoyer and followed up with a pun-laden query about Hoyer's ability to "stand tall in the pocket."
Lewis answered in standard fashion and the press conference went on without incident.
Prior to opening the floor for questions, Lewis again addressed his comment from Monday night’s radio show in which he called the 6-foot Manziel a midget.
“The remark that I made was dumb and caused a lot of uproar,” he said. “So again I apologize for that.”
Injury report: Three cornerbacks were on the injury report following Wednesday's practice. Adam Jones (chest) and Dre Kirkpatrick (ribs) did not practice, while Terence Newman (ankle) was limited.
Also sitting out with injuries were defensive end Margus Hunt (ankle), guard Mike Pollak (knee) and wide receiver James Wright (knee).
Kicker Mike Nugent was not at practice due to the sudden death of his father Daniel, 66, Monday night.
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