Can i play again

I broke my c7 snowboarding this past march, they took bone graphs from my hip to rebuild the vertebrae then i had my c7 and c6 fused together. I am an avid football player two of my surgeons told me the risk was to great to play again but they couldn't stop me and one said i might be able to return in a year. My question is: Is there anybody  who has come back to play again after having a similar injury?

[see6see7]

I understand how bad you want life to go back to normal.  I'm older (49) but stay active, lift weights, and I'm having neck and arm pain, left arm is very weak, and I've been told to fix all this I need C6-C7 fusion.  I haven't asked, but I doubt that the doctor would advise me to do heavy lifting any more.
I can't give medical advice 'cuz I'm no doctor, but you have a lot of years ahead of you.  The other discs in your neck will have to carry more load because of your fused c6-c7, so I would be careful.  If you injure other discs, you'll need more fusions.  You don't want that.
Good luck.  I still don't know if I'm going to have the surgery or wait...