Sam Bradford: Tough recovery ahead

  • To unlock all of features of Rams On Demand please take a brief moment to register. Registering is not only quick and easy, it also allows you access to additional features such as live chat, private messaging, and a host of other apps exclusive to Rams On Demand.

-X-

Medium-sized Lebowski
Joined
Jun 20, 2010
Messages
35,576
Name
The Dude
Nick Wagoner
http://espn.go.com/nfl/story/_/id/9904482/sam-bradford-st-louis-rams-knee-surgery-tuesday

nfl_u_bradford_gb1_600.jpg



EARTH CITY, Mo. -- A little more than two weeks after suffering a torn ACL in his left knee,St. Louis Rams quarterback Sam Bradford is set to have surgery, he said Wednesday.

After waiting more than a week so swelling could go down and he could strengthen the knee, Bradford said he will have his ACL repaired Tuesday.

Dr. James Andrews, the same doctor who repaired Bradford's shoulder when the QB was at Oklahoma in 2009, will perform the surgery. According to Bradford, he has yet to visit with Andrews, but the noted surgeon already has reviewed the MRI of the knee and will consult with Bradford the day before the operation.

Bradford is bracing himself for his road to recovery, especially the tough part of regaining range of motion and flexibility. He also has spent time talking to teammates who have had similar injuries.

"I'm not expecting it to be easy," Bradford said. "I know it's going to be tough, but I'm going to do everything I can to get better every day. The best thing to do is just take it day by day and try to get better every day, and in the end, when I'm ready to go, I'll be ready to go."

Bradford was quick to shoot down any attempts at setting a timetable for his recovery. He said he hadn't even thought about the possibility of returning in time for at least some of the spring activities such as organized team activities or minicamps.

The good news for Bradford is that the injury is only to the ACL and he has a clean tear, which he acknowledged could help expedite the process.

"Everything else is intact," Bradford said. "They said everything looks really good. With that injury, sometimes other things happen."

Bradford suffered the injury Oct. 20 against Carolina when safety Mike Mitchell shoved him as he was going out of bounds. He believes his left foot appeared to get stuck in the ground and the rest of his body kept moving forward, causing the tear. Bradford said he has watched the play since and didn't see anything wrong with what Mitchell did.

Likewise, Bradford said he hoped that when Mitchell celebrated on the sideline he didn't know Bradford was hurt but that he appreciated guard Harvey Dahl for sticking up for him after the play.

"It happened in the field of play, and I wasn't out of bounds," Bradford said. "It's not like he came over and tried to kill me, either. I think it was a clean play."

As Bradford embarks on his recovery process, he has no intention of being anywhere but around his teammates. He surprised many by attending practices last week and has been a regular in meetings since the injury. He also has served as a sounding board for fellow quarterbacks Kellen Clemens, Austin Davis and Brady Quinn.

"That's just Sam," coach Jeff Fisher said. "Nothing was said to him at all about coming around, and he just loves it. He wants to support the offense, and help Kellen and Brady and Austin. He's done a tremendous job. He was voted captain, and clearly that's not the reason he's here. He's here because he wants to help."
 

Young Ram

Hall of Fame
Joined
Oct 1, 2011
Messages
2,493
Get well soon because we're gonna need you next year for our playoff run!
 

fearsomefour

Legend
Joined
Jan 15, 2013
Messages
17,154
Nothing to indicate this guy will do anything but work very, very hard and come back fine. Character counts.
 

max

Hall of Fame
Joined
Jul 31, 2010
Messages
3,010
Name
max
“There’s no doubt. Someone asked me like, ‘Why are you still here?’ It’s like, what else am I going to do?Football is all I have, so if I weren’t up here helping out, watching film, I honestly have no idea what I would do. It sure as anything beats sitting at home watching TV, listening to music, so I’ll be up here until they kick me out.”

I liked Sam's comment.
 

Ky Ram

Pro Bowler
Joined
Sep 30, 2013
Messages
1,918
Im on team Sammy for sure. I think this was going to be his best season for us and next year we were gonna rip sh-t up.
Here's to a speedy and successful recovery
 

nighttrain

Legend
Joined
Jan 12, 2013
Messages
9,216
Im on team Sammy for sure. I think this was going to be his best season for us and next year we were gonna rip sh-t up.
Here's to a speedy and successful recovery
I'm hoping his time on the sideline could really be very productive when SB gets game ready. He hit the ground running as a Ram draftee, now he will be able to view defenses from the sideline gameday, it's gotta help his decision making
train
 

theramsruleUK

Pro Bowler
Joined
Oct 21, 2013
Messages
1,079
After seeing him on the sidelines against the Seattle, I'm convinced more than ever that Sam is THE man to take the rams forward... That type of leadership is exactly what we need... Fair play to you mate.. Always wanting to help the team, even when injured.. Def got a bright future ahead
 

Ky Ram

Pro Bowler
Joined
Sep 30, 2013
Messages
1,918
After seeing him on the sidelines against the Seattle, I'm convinced more than ever that Sam is THE man to take the rams forward... That type of leadership is exactly what we need... Fair play to you mate.. Always wanting to help the team, even when injured.. Def got a bright future ahead
The whole time I was watching I kept wishing they made him wear a boot though. I was praying he didn't get trucked by some sweep to our side of the field.
 

theramsruleUK

Pro Bowler
Joined
Oct 21, 2013
Messages
1,079
The whole time I was watching I kept wishing they made him wear a boot though. I was praying he didn't get trucked by some sweep to our side of the field.

That's a good point. Imagine the carnage of a Laurinaitis tackle taking out Sam... *shudder"