Boomer has maintained his skepticism in Aaron Rodgers making an improbable return from Achilles surgery this season, and after speaking with multiple people with knowledge of the injury, the surgery, and the healing process, he is more certain than ever that not only will Rodgers not return in 2023, but he would be risking the rest of his career if he did.
“The tendon itself needs time to heal itself,” Boomer said. “You want the thing to heal, and you don’t want to be stretching it out. If you’re out there walking around…you’re actually stretching that tendon way too early, in the eyes of many people who have done this surgery. The idea is to let the tendon heal first, and then you have to stretch it. If you’re stretching it now, before it is actually fully healed, there is a very good chance it is going to be like a stretched-out rubber band that is going to lose its elasticity.
“If, in fact, that is the surgery…you are risking the potential of those sutures at the bottom of the heel popping, and if that happens, you’re basically going to have to go back in there and redo all of that again. If you are out there way too early in your rehab, there is a really good chance that thing is going to get stretched out and stay stretched out, and therefore, you’re going to lose the elasticity of it. Then, the question becomes, is the calf gonna be able to handle it and have that bounce that you normally have in your legs and feet?”
With all of those concerns, Boomer believes Rodgers likely is already pushing himself too much this soon after surgery, and needs to dial it back for the sake of next season.
“He is really risking that it may never get back to normal,” Boomer said.