What Ryan Broyles learned about his first ACL rehab has helped with the second.
But the mistakes he made the first time still paid off for him.
The Lions wide receiver gave himself more time after his second ACL tear last December, and said during this week’s minicamp he could tell the difference. He pushed his rehab from his first ACL tear in college, trying to run well enough to improve his draft stock. There were lingering problems through the season, however.
“Last year I kind of beat my knee up trying to get ready for the combine,” Broyles said, via Dave Birkett of the Detroit Free Press. “You’ve got to be smart about what you do and last year I had to hurry up before my quad was strong enough and before my hammy and my glut was strong enough, I was out there running so I could get ready for the pro day. I ran at the pro day 3½ months [after surgery]. I didn’t really start running here until about five months, so I think that extra month and a half really helped me out.”
Now, he’s hoping that time buys him training camp, rather than starting the year on the physically-unable-to-perform list. If he can do that, it would be a significant step in his becoming a part of a passing game that didn’t add much help this offseason.
“I think we saw some of [what he can do] late in the year last year before he got hurt,” quarterback Matthew Stafford said. “He’s a guy that can be a chain mover and at the same time can be explosive in there with some catch and run.”
The fact he didn’t try to show that explosiveness so soon this time through is likely a factor in that optimism.
But when thousands of dollars in signing bounus tied to draft spot were on the line, it’s also hard to fault Broyles for pushing it when he did.