Wes Welker reportedly tore his ACL last season and, surprisingly, was on the field for the Patriots OTAs this week. No one is saying he’s completely back but it’s an impressive start to his return to injury. In fact, some are even wondering if he could be ready for the start of the season in September, which many didn’t think would happen.
Odds Are Against Wes Welker Returning To Pre-Injury Form
Welker will return to football -- at some point -- but how effective will he be? The Boston Globe passes along a study that suggests his effectiveness will be severely limited.
A 2006 study by the American Journal of Sports Medicine showed that 79 percent of NFL running backs and receivers undergoing ACL surgery from 1998-2002 were able to return to the field. But the players who did return performed at just 66 percent of the level they performed at pre-injury, on average.
He didn’t play a full season in 2009 but still had 123 catches for 1,348 yards. Cutting off about a third of that would leave him in the area of 80 catches and just under 900 yards.
The report goes on to state that it can take up to 18 months for a player to regain the “first step quickness” of the pre-injury form. For Welker, this is especially concerning because much of his game is based on his first-step quickness.
For more on Welker and the Patriots, check out SB Nation’s Pats Pulpit.
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