A week after suffering an MCL sprain that looked far worse than the reality, Seahawks quarterback Russell Wilson will start on Sunday against the Jets. He'll wear a custom knee brace similar to those worn by players coming off a torn ACL, helping him continue his run of never missing a game.
He might not be his usual mobile self, according to his rehab expert, but Wilson is more than capable of being himself on the field.
"He's looking pretty good," said Drew Marcos, the rehab specialist who has worked with Wilson for years. "Obviously he's not 100 percent, but he's able to do what he needs to do to lead the team as the QB. He's not going to be his typical mobile self, but he'll be able to sit in the pocket and do what he does."
Last week, playing on a mild high-ankle sprain, Wilson was 15 of 23 for 243 yards and a TD in an easy win over the Niners. The original thought was the ankle would limit him, but Marcos flying in immediately to help him -- along with Wilson's diligence -- allowed him to be on the field.
This week, Wilson said he's "good to go."
Marcos is the founder of MOTUS, an approach to rehab that focuses on functional movement, and he works with several professional athletes to help prevent injuries. For Wilson, now battling ankle and knee injuries that likely won't be behind him for two to three weeks, this week was all about strengthening and pain management.
"Overall, it's a lot of strengthening, pain management, trying to get him used to loading that leg, but also doing everything on both sides," Marcos said. "It's different joints, different areas, but you gotta strengthen both legs. The ankle, it's more about planning and stability. The back leg, it's a matter of bending and moving around and back-peddling. Then, there is letting his brain understand there are moments when he really has to move around and preparing him for that. It might be, not necessarily painful, but enough where it has to load a different way."
The goal is to simulate game day, with lateral movement and making sure the knee is prepared for everything. But it took a week full of preparation to make sure Wilson would be ready to play versus the Jets.
As soon as he gets home from the facility, he's doing rehab, according to Marcos, who added way the knee injury looked, it might've been worse for other players. Yet, since Wilson does so much work on flexibility, there wasn't as much stress on his knee, Marcos said.
"Working the last few years," Marcos said, "was really effective in what we saw (by) Saturday."
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