Polak clashed heads with Werribee’s Mitch Thorp while playing for Coburg in a collision that saw both players fall to the ground concussed.
It is just over two years since Polak was hit by a Melbourne tram, leaving him in a coma.
Hardwick said Polak’s history of head trauma had not been a factor in the decision to rest him.
“He’s going well. We’ll probably give him a rest this week, just as a precaution. It was a very severe knock,” Hardwick said.
“Any player who is knocked out before he hits the ground we’ll probably take a very cautionary tack with. Not just because it’s Graham but because we’ll probably rest him this week.
“He’s playing some reasonable football. He’s doing everything we want him to do. He’s taking some marks up forward and kicking goals. He needs to get back and play some good football to force his way back into our side.”
Nathan Foley will also spend at least another week on the sidelines as he recovers from a leg injury that has disrupted much of his season.
Hardwick said Foley, like Polak, was being rested as a precaution.
“He’s a guy who could possibly play but we’re not prepared to put him out there when he’s in an uncomfortable state,” he said.
“He’ll take another week and we’ll assess his situation. He’s in constant consultation with the doctors just to see how that’s going. We’re just not prepared to put him out there at this stage.”
The Tigers take on the Sydney Swans this week in what will be the second clash between the two teams this year.
The Swans won by 55 points the first time around in round three and Hardwick said this week’s clash would be a good gauge on how much his side had improved.
“We’ve come a long way, we know the mistakes we’ve made from that. It would just be a good learning process for us as coaches and us as a team to see how far we’ve come against a quality opposition,” he said.
Hardwick said he’d approach the second half of the season with the long term in mind rather than chasing wins.
“It’s probably just to keep developing our players. At some stage we want to put (Jayden) Post back in, we want to get (David) Gourdis into our side and see what those players can deliver for the future.
“From our point of view it’s all about the long-term success we’re after and we want to see what those guys can deliver on an AFL stage.”
