Patriots’ Wes Welker Passes Physical and Joins Team on the Field
The New England Patriots’ leading receiver Wes Welker joined his team on the football field for practice on Sunday for the first time in eight months, after suffering a serious knee injury at the end of last season.
The Patriots director of player personnel, Nick Caserio, was pleased to announce that Welker passed his physical and not long after, the two-time Pro Bowl slot back was out playing catch with quarterback (QB) Tom Brady.
“He’s ready to go now. He’s deemed physically ready to go based on the tests and what our trainers have decided, so he’ll be out there," said Caserio.
New England was being extremely cautious and did not want to rush Welker back on the field. So the club opted to place him on the active/physically unable to perform list before Wednesday’s veteran training-camp at Gillette Stadium in Foxborough, Massachusetts.
But now that Welker has practiced and passed his physical, his name is off the physically unable to perform list. When a player is on that list, it means that the player would have to miss the first six games of the 2010 regular season.
Welker tested his reconstructive knee by running full speed, planting and making cuts and running good routes. Every time he made a catch in practice, the fans cheered and applauded his efforts.
"I've been pushing it [left knee] and trying to get ready and get out there with my teammates, get a few reps and try and get better as much as we can,” said Welker. "I'm not fully there. We're getting closer. I can't point out one thing. I think I can get better at a lot of things, whether I was 100 percent or not. We're working toward that."
Four months after undergoing knee surgery, the two-time Pro Bowl slot receiver participated in strength and agility drills while wearing a protective brace on his knee.
Folks in New England, including Welker, are expecting to see him in uniform for the season opener on September 12th and hauling in passes from Brady against the Cincinnati Bengals. This has been and continues to be the plan since rehab started.
Although Welker is practicing in pads, he has not participated in contact drills. “That’s up to the doctors and the coaches, seeing when I get out there with the team in full drills and things like that,’’ Welker said.
Time will tell if his left knee can hold up with his elusive style of running and how well he responds to contact. Usually after suffering a serious knee injury, players tend to hold back and are hesitant to go 100 percent for fear of re-aggravating their injury.
The Patriots added some reinforcement at the receiving corps, by signing veteran wide receivers Torry Holt, from the Jacksonville Jaguars last season, and David Patten. But Patten shocked coaches and teammates by announcing his decision to retire on Sunday. Starters Randy Moss and Welker, the fan favorites, will continue to be Brady’s favorite targets on Sundays.
Welker was unable to compete in the playoffs and his presence was utterly missed as New England’s hunt for their fourth Super Bowl this decade came to an end when they lost 33-14 at home to the Baltimore Ravens. Now that he is back, the Patriots will once again make noise in the AFC East under Coach Bill Belichick.
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