AUSTIN CORBETT -- THE LONG ROAD BACK

If you guys haven't been following this story, you REALLY should.

On January 8, 2023, Austin Corbett went down with a torn ACL. On the same day, same game (NO Saints), Brady Christenson broke his ankle. So, both starting OGs out at the same time. Luckily (if you can even think that way..) it was the last game of the season. Now comes surgery and rehab for both of them. Chr5istensen's break is a lot simpler to manage and recovery is faster. Corbett is in for a long haul before he is ready to return. Most reasonable thought seems to indicate he may miss the season opening.

As part of the "process", Corbett is allowing us (the fans) an inside look at what is happening and what it takes to rehab and recover from an ACL tear. He is doing a monthly update, and we now have seen four of them. The following links are to each of the installments as listed...

#1 --- Austin Corbett -- One Month In To Recovery

#2 --- Austin Corbett -- Two Months, Crutches And Little Weight Bearing

#3 --- Austin Corbett -- Getting Back On His Feet

#4 --- Austin Corbett -- Getting "Hungry"  For Normalcy

#5 --- Austin Corbett -- Fighting Boredom While Heading Toward "Football"

#6 --- Austin Corbett -- Continuing The Journey With Family And Football

#7 ---  Austin Corbett -- Movement And Power Increasing -- "Contact" (Of some sort..) In The Near Future

#8 --- Austin Corbett -- Pushing Hard -- Hammering The Sled -- Running & Working Against Big Guys

#9 --- Austin Corbett -- 9 Months And Back On The Field

ENJOY..!!

Best wishes to him. I hope he can come back better than before, but also hope he doesn't re-injure it by playing sooner than he needs to.

Five months in now, and Austin Corbett is getting a lot closer to a "normal" football player's existence. In the next ten days or so, Corbett will be cleared to start running some (straight line only..). Over the last month his damaged leg (knee) has gradually strengthened back to where it is almost as strong as the other one. He still has another four months or so of rehab, possibly even more. Still, he has come a long ways since January and is looking forward to moving on with football.

Here's episode five of the road to recovery.

#5 -- Austin Corbett -- Fighting Boredom While Heading Toward 'Football'

Love reading bout his journey. 5 months so far. 10 days from running. Month 5, needs 9+. On pace or better. Hope he gets right even in if it’s in
year 2, may take that long. Want him healthy. he’s a plus.

Love reading bout his journey.  5 months so far.  10 days from running.  Month 5, needs 9+.  On pace or better.  Hope he gets right even in if it’s in
year 2, may take that long.  Want him healthy.  he’s a plus.

YES.... You said it perfectly.

If you haven't been following this story, you really should.

It's like one of those 'Lifetime' events you see on television... only this one is a REAL life story about a Panther football player in recovery mode. His first year as a Panther was eye-opening as he helped anchor a much improved O-line. Then it came crashing down in the final game of the year when both he and Christensen suffered serious injuries requiring surgical intervention. Christensen's broken ankle was arguably a lot less severe than Corbett's ACL tear, but we need to remind ourselves that these are BIG guys playing on the O-line where lateral mobility, quickness, and leg "push" are the core attributes around which NFL careers are built (or lost...).

If you need (want..??) to..... go back to the #1 post in this thread and follow this story from the beginning. Every month there is an "update" and they are all "linked" in the first post.

SIX months in... Austin Corbett is continuing on his road to returning to prominence on the Panthers O-line. It's a long, slow process. Last month he just started "running' a little. Straight line and gentle movements. Now he's getting around a lot better, helping with the children, and doing a lot more family oriented stuff. He's also starting to run "sprints" with the team, although at a reduced pace and effort.

This is an amazing opportunity to "watch" the tribulations these larger-than-life NFL players go through, and remind ourselves that these guys are "real". They have families and responsibilities just like the rest of us.....

#6  Austin Corbett -- Continuing The Journey With Family And Football

Austin Corbett's journey back from ACL

Seven (7) months in to recovery/rehab at this point. We've been following this journey with Corbett's permission and his willingness to share the trials and tribulations with the fans. He's starting to do lateral movements and getting ready to start "cutting". The 'angular' movements are the next BIG obstacle. Slowly working in to those before he starts hitting the blocking 'sled'. Lots and lots of progress here.....

Be sure to start at the beginning when you read through these articles and updates. All of them are linked in the first post in this thread.

#7  Austin Corbett:  Movement And Power Increasing -- "Contact" (Of some sort..) In The Near Future

Almost 9 Months now and Austin Corbett has received permission to get back on the field. Seems like a long time but it's really not. Nine months for a BIG guy to recover from a major reconstructive surgery on a knee. That's a remarkably quick recovery. Corbett has done everything right.

The Panthers have announced the reintegration of Corbett into the day to day grind of practice. That means a 21 day window has now opened to allow him to integrate back into the active roster. 21 days to get back into "game shape". 21 days to clear off of the PUP list where he started the year. The doctor said "OK, practice him". That is all Corbett needed to hear to hit the field and start pushing other big-bodied players around. Start clearing space for the Offense.

Hopefully, everything will go well for Corbett and we will soon see him on the field against an opposing team. Gosh, the Panthers could use some good news on the injury scene.

PANTHERS.COM:   Panthers Announce RG Austin Corbett Is Cleared To Practice