NFL star’s knee injury raises questions about future

Jan 27, 2014 | Sports

by Corey Weir

A torn meniscus doesn’t sound pleasant to begin with, but playing with one for the majority of a 16-game NFL season is a whole different story.

Chris Johnson

Tennessee Titans running back and soon-to-be free agent Chris Johnson is about to have surgery on a meniscus he just now disclosed had been injured since September.

This comes at a very inopportune time for Johnson as he is about to hit the open market for the first time in his career.

As history shows, teams aren’t big on giving free agent running backs the money they may want, let alone a running back coming off surgery on an ailing knee.

Chris Johnson says he is uncertain about his future but that’s not bothering him:

 

 

When people hear torn meniscus, it’s labeled as a knee injury, but do people really know anything specific about it?

I talked with Artur Koka-Puziarski, a physiotherapist in Rexdale, ON, about what a meniscus is.

 

 

Koka-Puziarski said, Johnson would only be able to continue to play with a little assistance:

 

 

Knee Diagram

A diagram showing where the meniscus is located in one’s knee.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

This is a demonstration of Chris Johnson’s strength and drive and it begs the question: are some athletes better equipped to deal with injuries than others?979252291_2f4f0d2dfa_z

Adrian Peterson, for example, tore his ACL and within a year was back on the field and rushed for over 2,000 yards on the ground.

These occurrences continue to happen in all sports and it often makes one wonder, how is this possible?

Jason Powell, Dean of Health Sciences at Humber College said, it’s not just athleticism that helps professionals get through some of their injuries:

 

 

A meniscus tear can hinder an athlete in any sport. However, the injury to a running back could end a career.

Dean Powell said there is definitely more aggression towards the knee area at the running back position: