Joe Haden sat out with a broken finger, so what's the problem?

Last Sunday, Cleveland Browns Pro Bowl cornerback Joe Haden decided he couldn't help the team by playing with a broken finger and a rib contusion, so he decided to sit out.

And that should be that. Except that Haden sitting out has become a pretty big deal around Cleveland this week. That's unfair.

Two things contributed to this becoming a bigger story than it should be. First, Haden was listed as probable, which almost always means an injured player will be active. So it was a surprise when he was inactive. It's so rare the NFL is looking into it. Second, Browns coach Mike Pettine said after the game that Haden "made the decision that he didn’t want to go," the type of statement a coach should never make. Pettine seemed to question Haden's desire, and he apologized for that on Wednesday.

"I think a lot of that's unwarranted, and I will bear some of that blame just in detailing the procedure and how it went," Pettine said, according to the Akron Beacon-Journal.

"I just think it's unfortunate because is one of the faces of our franchise. Nobody questions his toughness, his leadership, how important the Browns are to him, what football, what being a Cleveland Brown means to him and vice versa. So I think it's unwarranted, and I misspoke. Joe wanted to be out there. He wanted to play. But just in his assessment, did not want to put the team at risk knowing that he could not be at the percentage that in his heart he knew couldn't get to."

Here's the bigger issue: Players shouldn't have their toughness questioned for sitting out. Take Haden, for instance. He got shots and a cast on his right hand before he ultimately decided he couldn't help the team, the Beacon-Journal's Nate Ulrich said. Haden took the blame for not being forward enough about how bad his finger was with the coaches during the week, because he wanted to play so bad.

There really shouldn't be any problem with Haden not playing last week.

"It's upsetting," Haden said, according to Ulrich.

Haden said nobody in the locker room questioned him. They understand. We've made legends out of other players for playing through injuries, like Ronnie Lott for losing a part of his pinkie to stay in a game, but it becomes too easy to criticize someone for not playing through a broken bone or a concussion or whatever. Every NFL player plays through pain. It's incredibly rare that a player doesn't want to play, at very least because they don't want to lose their spot in the lineup. It's their livelihood. And if a player decides that he can't play through a serious injury, or doesn't want to make it worse in a league that doesn't have guaranteed contracts, then so be it. It's hypocritical to have an expectation, spoken or unspoken, that players should rush back or play through very serious injuries, then discard them once the effects of those injuries make them lesser players.

Haden said he hopes to play this week against the Baltimore Ravens. And if he decides he can't, it shouldn't be an invitation to criticize one of the best players in the NFL.

- - - - - - -

Frank Schwab is the editor of Shutdown Corner on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at shutdown.corner@yahoo.com or follow him on Twitter! Follow @YahooSchwab