Wes Welker was a great player. I have nothing but respect for him even though I despise the Pats*. His entire game is based on quick change of direction and without that change of direction he's just another player. If he does make a full recovery from a torn ACL will he ever have that type of change of direction that he had prior to the injury? Anyone have a good understanding of the recovery process from a torn ACL and how it would effect his movement in the future?
Strangely enough there's an update from today: http://www.rotoworld.com/content/playerpages/player_main.aspx?id=2964&sport=nfl Wes Welker (ACL, MCL surgery, torn rotator cuff) admits that "it's hard to put any sort of timetable on" his recovery. Welker did say he's "happy" with his progress, and it's remarkable that he's jogging just three months after knee reconstruction. "No telling when that’s going to be or how long it’s going to take," he said, "all I can do is just work hard." We'd rarely doubt Welker's ability to overcome long odds, but the period of time between his surgery (February 3) and Week 1 (September 12) just doesn't give him enough time. He's still worth monitoring closely. Personally, I've bounced back from serious injuries much sooner than expected, and have conversely been laid up longer than I should have been for other things. So the wishy-washy answer is "no one really knows." Welker's never had anything of this magnitude before, but he could be one of those freakishly quick healers. Remember TO in the Super Bowl? The guy had a broken ankle like three weeks before that or something. Typically, the recovery time is 6-8 months for "normal" people who don't earn their paycheck playing pro football. Conventional wisdom in the sports world says one year from surgery. Some guys have done it faster, but few of those guys relied on their ability to cut and dart around like Welker does.
I tore my ACL in my left knee. The surgeries are far better now than when I got mine done (back in 2001). Structurally his knee should be stronger. Mentally however, that's what took me awhile to get over. I always favored my right leg. PS fuck Welker.
I'm more curious if he will ever be the same. I fully expect he will be ready to play football again at some point next season but will he ever be able to make those plant and cuts and that are what makes him so difficult to cover.
It's usually a 2 year injury. 2 years in the sense to overcome the mental aspect, a lot shorter to overcome the physical. No way he is the same player this year. Next year, it would just be a factor of his ability to put the injury behind him.
Yeah, that's the same question we're all asking! But I don't think anyone will know until he's on the field. My guess is that he'll lose a half step but will still be pretty effective as a slot guy. Even if he's not quite as quick, he's still got excellent hands, and knows how to find little spots in the defense. The fact that he's not a huge guy may actually help him. Lower center of gravity, etc.
I still think he's going to be a very effective player for the Pats, however I do not see him catching 100+ balls in a season again anytime soon and he will be caught from behind a little bit more.
i don't care how fast he may heal he won't be very effective this year. i wouldn't put it past him to come back at the same level that he was at but it's just not gonna happen 6 months after destroying his knee.
i hope he returns in time to play us......because our D is gonna absolutely destroy Welker. Welker running a slant route + Brodney Pool running towards him like Bobby Boucher = back on the IR for Welker
ever since we got cro, wilson and pool i have been waiting to see those gay bubble screens get absolutely destroyed.
if he's doing that less than 4 months after surgery...he'll probably be fully or close to fully healthy by the start of the season, which is another 3 months away. sucks for us. that said, we play them the 2nd game of the season, and our defense is way better. He won't be catching 12+ passes against us like in the past. they also haven't made any real upgrades offensively. it would have been much better for us to face them without welker, but i still think we beat them. i half expect a loss in foxsborough later in the season, but i'll take a split with the pats if that's the case.
Jogging is not a tough task with an ACL issue. I was jogging without an ACL leading up to my surgery. Its the side to side movement that will be gone, so therefore a lot of the explosiveness that lets a player like Welker seperate from defenders. He may play this year, but will most likely not be up to the form we have come to see from him. I think in 2011 he will be at 100%. Part of what you have to over come is the loss of muscle from the surgery and the long inactivity of the knee area afterward. This is what will take time to recoupe more than anything. Its an odd thing to recoupe from, one second your doing great and the next day your knee is the size of a softball and you need to rest it some. I doubt Wes pushes it too much and i'm sure he's receiving a lot better treatment than i did after my surgery. Puck is also right about the mental aspect. I still have not tried playing hockey or rugby again. I have no desire to go through any mroe surgery on my kneee, not to mention the last one cost me the price of a new car.
The NFL Network guys were just talking about this and said that Welker likely will miss the start of the regular season.
