Needing info and 'inspo', Jeff Okudah went to Google. He had just torn his Achilles tendon in the first game of his second NFL season. He was done for the year, possibly longer. He was about to embark on a grueling rehab process. He was searching for reasons to believe, and where to search if not Google?
So he typed in his injury to “look at athletes that have had in the past,” Okudah said Thursday. Specifically, athletes who have recovered from it. And he wound up in the Instagram DM’s of a pair of NBA All-Stars.
“I spoke to John Wall, (DeMarcus) ‘Boogie’ Cousins, guys that have dealt with it, just trying to figure out how I can come back at the best of my game,” Okudah said. “Got some advice from those guys. They just gave me the confidence that the Achilles will be the least of your worries -- it’ll be about getting back mentally and taking care of the rest of your body.
“For me, that was really reassuring going into the rehab process. And from there, just attacked the rehab relentlessly since November.”
Seven months later, Okudah is back on the field. He was running sprints and participating in drills where possible during the Lions’ fifth practice of OTA’s Thursday, and enjoying every second of it. After all, “I couldn’t walk to the restroom in September,” he said.
“So to be here doing drills, it’s a blessing,” said Okudah. “It wasn’t a guarantee that I would be out here.”
Wall, a former first overall pick, tore his Achilles in his ninth NBA season at the age of 28 and returned two years later to average over 20 points a game. Cousins, a former fifth overall pick, tore his Achilles in his eighth NBA season at the age of 27 and is still playing five years later.
Okudah is a good deal younger at 23, which figures to work in his favor. The former third overall pick would like to script a similar comeback.
“I’m just grateful to be able to pass down their knowledge and kind of speak their testimony,” he said.
If Okudah is optimistic today, he was in a much darker place in the wake of the injury. He said his lowest moment came in the comfort of his aunt, who’s “like a second mom” to Okudah who lost his own mother just days after he left home for his freshman year at Ohio State.
“I had my aunt pick me up (the day it happened),” Okudah said. “Couldn’t really walk. The second I got in the car with my aunt, I just broke down crying. A lot of emotions poured over me. She’d never really seen me cry before, but I had big hopes for last season. That day, I was really down. It kind of felt like I was living a nightmare, honestly.”
To brighten his days in the months ahead, Okudah stayed around the Lions facility as much as he could. He watched film and participated in meetings with his fellow cornerbacks. Sometimes, he’d even go out to practice – “or scoot out there,” Dan Campbell said with a smile on Thursday.
“We saw a lot of him,” Campbell said. “He was still engaged and wanted to be around. It’s not easy, it’s a hard thing to do, but it’s better than just totally disengaging and being away from it.”
All the while, Okudah was rehabbing – his mind as much as his body. He said he was prepared for the physical toll of the recovery process, something “you’re accustomed to just being an athlete.”
“Mentally,” he said, “it’s tough. You’re out of your routine. Getting hurt in Week 1, it’s a long season. Sitting down for 16 weeks, you have a lot of time to reflect. On the bright side, you’re able to really look at yourself and have honest conversations with the people around you and plan a comeback you can be proud of.”
He’s almost there. He looks fluid on his feet. He appears to have the burst back in his step. Training camp will be a bigger test, but Campbell said Okudah is “right where he needs to be.” In some ways, Campbell said, Okudah's Achilles is "the least of my concerns," just like Wall and Cousins said from the start. The final hurdles will be mental.
"For him, that’s the biggest thing right now," said Campbell. "We’re not worried about Jeff’s movement skills. He’s going to be able to move. You watch him, his footwork and the things he’s doing, he can do all that. When the time’s right to go full speed when we get him in camp, he’ll be ready.”
The Lions are counting on Okudah to play a big role on defense this year, just like they were last year when he was poised to be their No. 1 corner. And Okudah, who also saw his rookie season cut short due to injuries, is eager to come through.
“For me, my drive just took over (during rehab),” he said. “Feel like I’ve been hungry, like I haven’t ate in years. That hunger has been inside of me since the injury, really since before the injury. I’ve had that feeling for probably two years. So just ready to go out there and play to the best of my ability.”
And when can we expect him to be 100 percent?
"I’ve thought about that question for a long time," Okudah said. "Best way to describe it is, I’m going to be ready when it’s time to be ready."
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