Wentz and lingering injury issues

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  • February 23, 2018 at 2:16 am #83007
    Avatar photozn
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    Orthopedic surgeon: Carson Wentz might be brace-dependent for rest of his career
    Penn Medicine’s Dr. John Kelly thinks Wentz’s late-season ACL tear is an “RG3 equivalent”

    https://www.cbssports.com/nfl/news/orthopedic-surgeon-carson-wentz-might-be-brace-dependent-for-rest-of-his-career/

    The consensus timetable for the return of Philadelphia Eagles quarterback Carson Wentz, who suffered a torn ACL in Week 14, has the MVP candidate on track for a potential Week One appearance in 2018.
    One orthopedic surgeon, however, thinks an Opening Day return is “very, very optimistic” and that Philadelphia has reason to worry about its quarterback’s knee.
    Joining Angelo Cataldi on SportsRadio 94 WIP this week, Dr. John Kelly, a professor of clinical orthopaedic surgery at Penn Medicine (University of Pennsylvania), said Wentz’s injury is actually “an RG3 equivalent” — a reference to the battered former Washington Redskins quarterback, Robert Griffin III, whose career lasted all of five seasons.
    “This is an ACL, plus at least two ligaments,” Kelly said. “This is an RG3 equivalent, folks. This is worrisome … That’s a long rehab. And if it were my patient, it would take nine, 10, 11 months.”
    The surgeon then went on to say, at least from his perspective, that it’s “absolutely” too optimistic to expect Wentz back on the field for the Eagles’ Sept. 6 opener. In his eyes, the two-year veteran would need a minimum of nine months of rehabilitation to start playing — with a knee brace, no less. And that kind of time frame suggests Wentz wouldn’t be available until mid- to late-September at the earliest.
    Kelly’s comments, while prominent, were also sandwiched between jokes — the 94 WIP team even openly identified the doctor as a “stand-up comedian” during the discussion. And the surgeon, who specializes in shoulder operations at Penn Medicine, often followed his opinions, formed from the same video of Wentz’s injury that’s available to the public, by deferring to Dr. James Bradley, the man behind Wentz’s ACL surgery.
    If anything’s clear from his comments, however, it’s this: No one truly knows just when Carson Wentz will be ready.

    February 23, 2018 at 2:36 am #83008
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    Eagles’ quarterback situation can quickly get messy in 2018

    Eagles’ quarterback situation can quickly get messy in 2018

    When Eagles coach Doug Pederson said he believes the team would have won the Super Bowl with Carson Wentz at quarterback, some viewed it as a slap at Nick Foles. It’s not; it’s a fairly obvious opinion based on how well the Eagles were playing with Wentz under center.

    But the reality for the Eagles has become that Wentz wasn’t able to stay healthy enough to see the season through, opening the door for Foles to unlock the team’s first Super Bowl championship.

    As the Eagles make decisions about the quarterback depth chart for 2018, it would be foolish to not ensure the existence of protections against Wentz not being ready for Week One. The easy answer is Foles. But if it’s Foles — if he’s the one who starts the Week One, season-opening, Super Bowl celebration, plays well, and wins — who will start Week Two? If Foles plays well and wins in Week Two, who will start Week Three?

    As long as Foles plays well, it’s a dynamic that will continue, and strengthen, with each passing week. As long as the Eagles are winning and Foles is playing well, Foles becomes Case Keenum and Wentz becomes Sam Bradford and Teddy Bridgewater.

    While the same thing could happen even if Nate Sudfeld or a veteran quarterback currently with another team (Josh McCown would be a great choice) serve as the placeholder until Wentz is ready to go, Foles brings a tangible quality the others don’t: He actually, not hypothetically, delivered the first Lombardi Trophy onto which the Eagles ever applied their fingerprints.

    Wentz is smart enough to realize how this could play out. He’s also apparently smart enough to not hitch his name to a goofy catch phrase like “All In For Week One” as part of an effort to process fear of being supplanted by his understudy. Still, is it good for the Eagles if Wentz tries so hard to get ready for Week One that he sets back his rehab and recovery?

    Wentz clearly is the Eagles’ long-term quarterback. But if Wentz isn’t ready for Week One, the backup will play. At some point, the switch will flip back to Wentz. If the backup is also the guy who delivered the Super Bowl win, the switch may be a lot harder to flip.

    Thus, in assessing their options for dealing with Foles, who is under contract through 2018, the Eagles need to consider the wisdom of getting maximum value for him now (in the name of rewarding him for what he brought to the city and the team) and having another No. 2 quarterback who will be easier to remove from the lineup if/when the season arrives, Wentz isn’t 100 percent, and the backup plays well.

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