Less than 24 hours after tearing his right Achilles tendon in New Orleans, Eagles Pro Bowl right guard Brandon Brooks was surprisingly upbeat.
Not to mention, motivated.
During locker room clean-out day on Monday, Brooks told reporters the recovery time is six to eight months. And once he has surgery and is out of his walking boot in six or seven weeks, he can't wait to attack his rehab.
Life goes on. I don't feel pity for myself, I don't feel down. Surprisingly, I actually think this is what I needed. It reignited a fire for me that I haven't touched in a while. I look forward to it.
What does Brooks mean by reigniting a fire?
"For me, every time I've ever gotten injured, it's kind of weird to say, God wanted me to see something," he explained. "For me, I know exactly what he wanted me to see. That's why I'm very upbeat. My spirits are lifted. Like I kind of tweeted out, ‘God got me, I'll be fine.' That's kind of what I mean. I'll be attacking rehab like a game. I look forward to getting back to myself as soon as possible. I will do whatever that takes."
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A lot of returning from a devastating injury like this is about perspective and attitude. It seems like Brooks is good on both fronts. It's a beast to attack a rehab as long and tough as this, but it seems like Brooks has the right mindset.
Six months from now, it'll be July. Eight months from now, it'll be September. That's obviously pushing up pretty close to the start of the 2019 season, so there's a very real possibility this injury lingers into next year. That would be tough for the Eagles because Brooks was their most consistent linemen during this past season. It became pretty clear how much he meant to the offense once he left the 20-14 loss on Sunday.
After Brooks went down in the first quarter on Sunday, he tried to hobble his way to the sideline, but eventually fell to the turf at the urging of his teammates because the play clock was running. He has never had a serious injury like this before, so he said he was actually surprised it didn't hurt more.
He said he didn't know how bad the injury was until he was on the cart leaving the field and realized his toes on his right foot were "a little bit further back" than those on his left foot.
Every single Eagles player from the sideline came out to wish him well before the cart took off. Brooks said that and all the text messages and tweets he's received since suffering the injury have meant a lot.
Brooks said he has "nothing to cry about" just because he's injured. He mentioned that Jason Peters came back from tearing his Achilles twice in 2012 when everyone thought he would never be the same. Peters then made the Pro Bowl from 2013-16. And Brooks' friend and teammate from Houston, Derek Newton, tore both patellar tendons on the same play in 2016 and signed with the Saints in December.
"We play a sport where there's 100 percent chance of injury and you never know when your play will come, you never know what the injury it will be," Brooks said.
Unfortunately, this is a pretty serious injury for the 330-pound lineman. But his attitude should help him in the lengthy recovery process.
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