NS.. ex-NFL players sue league... It's starting to make sense now

Correct. As I stated in my post, they can REQUEST to get a second opinion, but can't just go out on their OWN. They have to consult with the Team Doctor first.

Sorry I wasn't clear on that.

Kyle said the same thing. You can go to an outside doctor but it is very much discouraged. Or at least it was with him - when he was on the Rams. He was told that he had the best doctors, who were specially trained to help NFL athletes, that could do a much more thorough job than these "outside" doctors.