Todd Gurley tore an ACL in November, and went 10th overall in the 2015 NFL Draft. Cedric Ogbuehi tore an ACL in his bowl game, and still went in the middle of the first round.
So you knew that for a cornerback as talented as Ifo Ekpre-Olomu to slide all the way to the seventh round, it had to be more serious than just an ACL.
Via Mary Kay Cabot of the Cleveland Plain Dealer, Ekpre-Olomu confirmed that he also suffered a dislocated knee in the process, which complicated his recovery time.
“Yeah, I think definitely teams were concerned and thinking that I wouldn’t be able to play or I wouldn’t be able to play at the level that I wanted to play,’' he said. “But it really only takes one team and I’m excited to be playing for the Browns and I’m excited that they gave me the opportunity to prove [myself] and they have the faith in me that I’m going to be back to 100 percent and healthy.’'
The team has expressed confidence he’ll return to pre-injury form, the only question is when. He originally thought he’d be ready to go by September, but now isn’t sure.
(That would also make him the only guy in football who is not “ahead of schedule” in his rehab).
In fact, this could become a redshirt year, with a seventh-round pick a small price to pay for someone who might have been a first before the injury.
“Health-wise, they told me that they want me to come in and rehab, and when I’m able to play, they feel that I can be a guy that can contribute on defense and on special teams,’' he said. “They don’t want me to rush back. They want me to make sure that I’m back 100 percent healthy. When that time comes, they want me to just go out there and compete.”
Now it’s just a matter of finding when that will be, and whether he’ll actually be back to himself when it happens.