2021 Offensive Line Discussion

This is from an article in The Roanoke Times from mid-March 2021 (link to article here: link; you may have to answer a question prior to article unlocking):

The offensive lineman was never one to complain about injuries during his collegiate career. He played the entire 2018 season with an ankle injury that required offseason surgery.

The groin injury he suffered last fall wasn’t as severe, but it lingered throughout the year and forced him to miss a game late in the season against Pittsburgh. Darrisaw was reluctant to sit out for only the second time of his career and went through pregame warmups at Heinz Field before being ruled out.

Darrisaw would feel sharp pain in his thigh from basic movements like sitting down when the injury was at its worst, but he was pain free when he travelled to Philadelphia for an MRI at The Vincera Institute in December.

“It was kind of a precautionary thing,” Darrisaw’s mother Kim Cherry said. “He wasn't having immediate pain, but since it was a recent problem area they wanted him to get it checked out."

The scan revealed a core muscle injury to his groin, a tear or group of small tears to the core muscles which can occur from the chest to mid-thigh.

“With the combine up in the air, I had nothing to lose,” Darrisaw said. “Teams would rather have you healthy. I knew it would be a weight off my shoulders if I got into surgery right here, right now."

And that’s what he did.

Darrisaw’s surgery was performed by The Vincera Institute’s founder Dr. William Meyers, who is a pioneer in the treatment of core muscle injuries. His list of past clients include Marshawn Lynch, Adrian Peterson and Arian Foster as well as numerous other high-profile professional athletes.

So he suffered a groin injury in the 2020 season and had surgery in December. If you remember, when Virginia Tech's Pro Day came up in late March 2021, Darrisaw only went through positional drills w/ VT's OL coach and didn't do any testing, prompting some to consider if he was bothered by any nagging injuries. 

You really have to wonder how much that 2020 groin injury affected his stock in Round 1....his "floor" was supposed to be Washington at #19. I did question that on Draft night....I could justify Vegas passing because, well, it's Gruden and Mayock we're taking about....but Washington and Indy passing at #19 and #20 really raised some questions....