Washington Redskins quarterback Robert Griffin III underwent successful right knee surgery Wednesday and it seems that the consensus among surgeons is that he will be ready for the start of the 2013 season.
Cornerback DeAngelo Hall -- who I should point out is not a world-renowned doctor (or is at least a graduate of Hollywood Upstairs Medical College) -- was not as optimistic about a speedy recovery.
"I hope Robert [Griffin III] is back on the field next year, trust me, but it will be a miracle if he's back by Opening Day and I definitely don't think that's going to happen," Hall told ESPN's Josina Anderson Thursday. "It's interesting the way the ball drops. I want him back on the field like everybody else, but we have to be realistic and he has to be safe. [Former Redskins running back] Tim Hightower tore his ACL in Week [7 of the 2011 season] and he wasn't back for the [2012 regular season] and we ended up having to cut him. That was almost a year. [Vikings running back Adrian Peterson] tore his Week 16 against us but he's back in time for the start of this season. It just depends. It just varies. Now you consider that Robert tore the same ACL twice, so it could take longer and be harder to come back from. [Peterson] is just a freak of nature. There's no way around that one.
'He's freakish athletically, but from a recovery standpoint, that may or may not be a different story," he continued. "I don't know a lot about ACLs. I have never injured one. I don't know all the details about the process. All I know is that I wish him the best and I want him to come back as soon and as safe as possible."
Meanwhile, Hightower, who you may remember had a legitimate chance to be the Redskins' starting running back before being cut in August, offered this advice to Griffin in an interview with The Washington Post:
“ACL surgery, there’s a lot of guys that can do it, and Dr. Andrews is the best in the field. It’s not impossible to come back from,” Hightower said. “But it’s just knowing that it’s a long grind ahead of you, it’ll require a lot of focus and discipline, and I hate to see guys go down. …That kid has rose to every occasion that’s been presented to him. And to see it, it was very unfortunate.“That surgery or injury doesn’t define you. It just is an opportunity to define you, which is talented and determined, and the things that make Robert Griffin special. I would just encourage him to make sure he has the right people around him – friends, family, trainers, medical staff. As long as he has the right people around him and the tools to get better, the other intangibles, he has the things he needs to get back to where he needs to be.”
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