Lions cornerback Jeff Okudah’s rookie season is over after he had core muscle surgery on Tuesday.
Word that surgery was on the horizon for the first-round pick broke over the weekend and Lions interim head coach Darrell Bevell confirmed the news on Monday. In a post about the operation on Twitter, Okudah wrote that the surgery went well and that he’s looking forward to his second NFL season.
“I’ve been through a roller coaster of emotions this past week, but I just wanted to share with everyone that I underwent a successful core muscle procedure to fix an injury that I’ve dealt with for a while now. As I start rehab, I look forward to putting this behind me and focusing on becoming the best player that I can be,” Okudah wrote.
In addition to the core muscle injury, Okudah’s rookie season also saw him miss time with hamstring and shoulder ailments. That made for a somewhat disappointing NFL debut for the third overall pick, but Bevell said Monday, via Carlos Monarrez of the Detroit Free Press, that he believes Okudah will “only be better for what he’s gone through this year.”