For the first time since suffering a major knee injury in Detroit’s Week 3 win in Arizona, starting SAM LB Derrick Barnes met with the media. Barnes told reporters more specifics about the injury and his progress in recovery from surgery.
“ACL was fine,” Barnes said, noting that he did tear the PCL and MCL in his right knee on the play. “Thank God I woke up and he said he didn’t have to do anything with the ACL.”
Barnes is progressing, but it’s arduously slow. He just started riding a stationary bike and won’t be cleared for weight-bearing exercise for weeks. The 25-year-old won’t be one of the players the Lions aim to bring back if (when) the team goes on a deep playoff run.
“I didn’t know I was going to be able to ride the bike today,” Barnes said. “Got on the bike, a little bit of walking inside the water, which was good for me. And my leg’s been super stiff and today is the first day I felt kind of normal and it’s been pretty well.”
It’s a contract year for Barnes, and he was poised to cash in on his steadily improving play. The injury puts a major kink in that chain of events, though Barnes doesn’t seem too concerned about his next NFL payday,
“I’m a God-fearing man and I believe in the Lord and the things he’s got for me.”