PA Season Ticket Holder
05-04-2003, 11:33 AM
BEREA, Ohio (May 2, 2003) -- Rookie running back Lee Suggs, one of several surprising selections by the Cleveland Browns in the draft, said he may be able to play this season following shoulder surgery.
The Browns, whose seven picks were widely panned by most NFL experts, thought Suggs had a torn rotator cuff and would not be unable to play until the 2004 season.
However, Cleveland team doctors told the Virginia Tech star he only has a partial tear, which should shorten his recovery time following arthroscopic surgery.
"There's a realistic possibility this could not be as significant a setback as any of us thought," Browns coach Butch Davis said.
Suggs doesn't know when he'll be ready, but judging by his ability to quickly bounce back from major knee surgery, it might be sooner than anyone expects.
"I just want to get out on the field and play," said Suggs, who rushed for 1,325 yards and 22 touchdowns last season after recovering from a torn knee ligament. "I want to prove a whole lot of people wrong."
Davis said team physician Dr. John Bergfeld was encouraged by MRI results and surgery will likely be scheduled for mid-May.
Davis took the news on Suggs with guarded optimism.
"I still have certain reservations until they go inside," Davis said. "That's not trying to put a damper on the situation at all. I'm just trying to be realistic. I'm not a surgeon. Once they get inside, they might find it's slightly more torn than expected or slightly less."
Suggs' stock slipped in the draft after he didn't work out at the scouting combine and had a sub-par performance during an individual workout.
He said his shoulder was hurting so badly -- he injured it in a January bowl win over Air Force -- that he was unable to lift weights and he paid for it.
Now Suggs wants to make the teams who didn't believe in him pay.
"I know I'm not a fourth-round draft pick and so do some of the teams that passed on me," said Suggs, who holds the NCAA record by scoring a TD in 27 straight games. "They were scared because of my shoulder. But now I have a chance to prove a whole lot of people wrong."
http://www.nfl.com/teams/story/CLE/6349461
The Browns, whose seven picks were widely panned by most NFL experts, thought Suggs had a torn rotator cuff and would not be unable to play until the 2004 season.
However, Cleveland team doctors told the Virginia Tech star he only has a partial tear, which should shorten his recovery time following arthroscopic surgery.
"There's a realistic possibility this could not be as significant a setback as any of us thought," Browns coach Butch Davis said.
Suggs doesn't know when he'll be ready, but judging by his ability to quickly bounce back from major knee surgery, it might be sooner than anyone expects.
"I just want to get out on the field and play," said Suggs, who rushed for 1,325 yards and 22 touchdowns last season after recovering from a torn knee ligament. "I want to prove a whole lot of people wrong."
Davis said team physician Dr. John Bergfeld was encouraged by MRI results and surgery will likely be scheduled for mid-May.
Davis took the news on Suggs with guarded optimism.
"I still have certain reservations until they go inside," Davis said. "That's not trying to put a damper on the situation at all. I'm just trying to be realistic. I'm not a surgeon. Once they get inside, they might find it's slightly more torn than expected or slightly less."
Suggs' stock slipped in the draft after he didn't work out at the scouting combine and had a sub-par performance during an individual workout.
He said his shoulder was hurting so badly -- he injured it in a January bowl win over Air Force -- that he was unable to lift weights and he paid for it.
Now Suggs wants to make the teams who didn't believe in him pay.
"I know I'm not a fourth-round draft pick and so do some of the teams that passed on me," said Suggs, who holds the NCAA record by scoring a TD in 27 straight games. "They were scared because of my shoulder. But now I have a chance to prove a whole lot of people wrong."
http://www.nfl.com/teams/story/CLE/6349461