For athletes, a torn ACL is as bad as it gets. Hell, it's debilitating even for normal people.
There is so much that goes into the recovery, as well. From surgery to the green light given by a patient's physical therapist. Even after that comes the mental fight where people have to build their inner confidence back up in the repaired knee (or knees) - and that can honestly be the toughest part of the journey, for some.
There are even situations where the MCL or PCL, other major ligaments, tear or get damaged alongside the ACL.
If that happens, it can obviously play a huge role in speeding up the recovery timeline. Fortunately for Minnesota Vikings tight end T.J. Hockenson, his MCL healed prior to his ACL surgery, which is a major win for the Pro Bowler.
"... The first few weeks was getting the swelling down and doing all that," Hockenson told reporters on Monday. "And trying to get the MCL to heal, which it did end up healing before surgery, so they didn't have to touch that during surgery, was huge. That was a big thing.
"For Dr. ElAttrache to go in and fix the ACL, he said it was perfect, everything went fantastic, it was very straightforward."
In terms of specifics, Hockenson is "squatting", per his own words, which is also a big development. In all, things are going really well, and while he won't put a timeline on his return (why would he?), one would be hard-pressed to feel pessimistic when it comes to the prospect of a Week 1 return. Not a full-on, 100% return, but a solid one, at let's say, 90%-ish.
"I really do give credit to Minnesota Vikings and the training staff and the people upstairs for, setting me out to be the best that I can be in these blocks and really coming up with a plan to make sure that whatever the timeline is at the end, just to make sure that these few weeks and these blocks are attacked and set out and standard that will give me back to the best I've been playing," said Hockenson.
A healthy Hockenson by Week 1 would be a major boost for the Vikings offense. Things already look very good with Justin Jefferson and Jordan Addison as the top receivers and Aaron Jones and Ty Chandler as the top running backs, adding Hockenson into the mix would easily push the Vikings' skill groups into top 5-7 territory.
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