Cam Skattebo’s promising start to his rookie season was cut short on Sunday after he suffered a gruesome injury in the New York Giants’ loss to the Philadelphia Eagles that warranted no replays being shown.
The running back suffered ligament tears while dislocating his ankle, which resulted in a compound wound, after getting tackled by Zach Baun on Sunday.
Skattebo had surgery in Philadelphia just hours after the injury, which was necessary because of the open wound, Doctor of Physical Therapy Tom Christ said in an interview with Fox News Digital.
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"It’s infection control. We kind of thought this from watching the injury — both the tibia and fibula snapped. And what happens when they snap is sometimes the bone can protrude through the skin. That was definitely a concern if you saw the play. But it was an open fracture, meaning the skin has been compromised. Now, any bacteria from his sock, the field, wherever, can easily get into the skin. And since the bone is fractured, it could get into the bone itself," Christ said.
In essence, it was to avoid an Alex Smith situation, in which his life was in danger after getting sepsis due to infections from his compound injury in 2018.
"If he does develop a bad infection, that’s going to make things really, really, really complicated and bad," Christ, whose Fantasy Injury Team takes deep dives football injuries and their effects on fantasy football, added.
Head coach Brian Daboll said Skattebo has a "long road" ahead, and Christ concurred, even assuming an infection is avoided.
"Pretty early on, for the first six weeks, he’s probably not weight-bearing at all. So right there, you’re going to get a lot of weakness developing. Atrophy sets in real fast," Christ said.
So Skattebo will spend several weeks strengthening the rest of his leg before even putting weight on his right foot, the doctor said. Christ added Skattebo probably won't be cleared for jogging or weightlifting until roughly four months out, and won't have full range of motion for about three. However, if most of it is back within 12 weeks, "he's set up for a really good rehab."
Skattebo does benefit from his playstyle, which isn't exactly juking out defenders but rather a more old-school, ground-and-pound attack.
"He’s not a speed guy. It’s not like he’s Jahmyr Gibbs, De’Von Achane. He’s a bruiser, he’s absolutely fearless – potentially psycho – he uses his blockers really well, he has great vision, and he’s a tremendous pass-catcher. Those are all things that will be less of a challenge to regain from this type of injury. If he were Gibbs or Achane, he may never get the top-top speed back."
If all goes to plan, despite the horrifying nature of the injury, the Arizona State alum could return to his impressive, thunderous form, according to Christ. Skattebo's age, just 23, will play a huge factor in his comeback.
"I cannot emphasize enough how critical his age is here. I know this is going to sound crazy here, but Chris Godwin being 28 when his injury happened, that five-year gap of 23 to 28 is huge with these types of rehabs. The younger you are, the more efficient your body is at healing. It just helps everything, man. It helps so much. I do think he can get back to a high level of play."
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