Dr. Jung opinion sought on potential speed of recovery after surgery for 49ers Linebacker.
Article Links: Doctor gives optimistic outlook for 49ers’ Dre Greenlaw after surgery sfchronicle.com)
Dre Greenlaw could play in the 2024 regular-season opener despite the San Francisco 49ers’ dynamic linebacker having suffered a torn left Achilles in the Super Bowl two weekends ago.
That’s according to Dr. Kenneth Jung, a foot and ankle surgeon who is a consultant to the Los Angeles Rams. Jung was peripherally involved in the rehabilitation of Rams running back Cam Akers, who returned from a torn Achilles he suffered in mid-July 2021 and played in the team’s regular-season finale less than six months later.
Akers’ recovery was faster than most, but not shocking, given the advancements in the surgical techniques and rehabilitation for an injury that once sidelined players for 9-12 months.
Greenlaw, 26, was injured in the 49ers’ loss to Kansas City in Super Bowl LVIII on Feb. 11, about seven months before the 2024 regular-season opener. Jung said it’s reasonable to expect Greenlaw to resume football activities by mid-August, about a month before the 49ers play their first regular-season game.
“We can confidently tell (patients) that at six months, that’s a reasonable amount of time to be back,” said Jung, who practices at the Cedars-Sinai Kerlan-Jobe Institute in Los Angeles. “Of course, there are no absolutes. It depends a lot on how well he’s rehabbing and how well he gains his strength back.”
Jung said Greenlaw could have been dealing with degeneration in the tendon that increased the likelihood of it tearing. If so, the surgery Greenlaw had Feb. 15 would have included removal of the damaged tissue.
“If you have pain in an area and you’re playing through pain, you know there’s a potential risk that something can let go or tear,” Jung said. “I’m sure they had those conversations. But obviously with playoffs and the Super Bowl, these are career-defining events, and guys are going to be more willing to risk things.”
Jets quarterback Aaron Rodgers returned to practice in late November, 77 days after he tore his Achilles in the regular-season opener, but he did not play. Rodgers had a “speed bridge” procedure, a new surgery designed to accelerate the recovery process.
Greenlaw isn’t facing the same time crunch. Jung believes his repaired tendon should be at full strength before the start of the regular season with a traditional rehabilitation plan. The bigger unknown is how Greenlaw will handle a daunting mental hurdle. It explains why fully healed athletes often say they didn’t recapture their pre-injury form until they were a full season removed from surgery.
“It’s getting that confidence back, especially with an Achilles,” Jung said. “In the back of their mind, they remember that pop in their leg. And it’s being able to trust that leg again to push off and explode off it. It requires getting rid of that apprehension, where they know they can just plant their foot in the ground and go.”
