I’ve found myself to be a buzzkill within the fantasy community. I hate it. But… here I go again.
As a future rehab professional, I’m stoked that Emmanuel Sanders looked great in the pre-season. Explosive. Decisive. The same Manny Sanders we’ve all happily slid into our WR2 slot for the past several years.
With that said, I’m not quite as optimistic in terms of his long-term health. The first reason is low hanging fruit, and honestly a trash tAEk on its own, so I’ll mention that he’s 32 years old only once.
Another more scientific reason why I’m not over the moon about his (admittedly amazing) showing is that he isn’t “ahead of schedule” as some reports have suggested, and he never was. The first reports of him running surfaced exactly 5 months from his surgery—the exact time he should have begun straight line running (reference).
His surgery was in early December and we are now approaching September, putting him close to 9 months from his surgery date. What I’m saying is that from a rehab perspective, if Manny is going to be Manny again, he’s right on schedule—not ahead of it.
As far as a re-tear of the Achilles, I’m not necessarily worried. In a study with 159 Achilles tears, there was only about a 2%-6% re-tear rate, and all of them occurred between weeks 4- 13 post-operatively. If it was going to re-tear, it likely would have happened by now.
Consider, the high ankle repair on one leg. High ankle sprains can be nagging and make it very difficult to push off the ground due to pain—a key requirement for a wide-out.
Now, consider the Achilles on the opposite leg. A study with 112 subjects with a ruptured Achilles found that even after 2 years, none of the subjects re-gained their full calf strength or endurance. The primary purpose of the calf’s existence is to push off of the ground.
So, if one ankle flares up from a surgical procedure (as often happens) and the other is just not quite the same, it is not unreasonable to foresee a major problem for Sanders.
My last thought on Sanders is physiological. Tendons thrive or die on the ability to take mechanical load. They recover well when gradually exposed to loads—until it is more than it can handle and it fails. I mentioned this on Twitter: Sanders looks great in late August, but his newly constructed tendon needs to handle an NFL season of worth of a load.
In summary: 1. If Sanders has no setbacks this season, he would be the exception to the rule. 2. His age is significant at this point in his career. 3. He was never ahead of schedule despite looking great in the pre-season. 4. His specific injuries require a “prove it” from a fantasy football perspective before I decide to draft him. To me, Sanders is a sell high candidate after the first quarter of the season or so.
Make sure to follow me on Twitter and Instagram @ff.student.doc and Twitter @FFStudentDoc for more injury analysis. Hit me up with specific questions at fakefootballinjuries@gmail.com.
About Me 