Ryan Kerrigan can’t open a jar, but at least he can play football.
The Eagles’ veteran free agent pickup didn’t last too long into training camp before he injured his thumb and needed surgery. But a month after the Eagles announced that surgery, Kerrigan says he’s ready to go.
It’s just the little things around the house that have really been frustrating him.
Stay in the game with the latest updates on your beloved Philadelphia sports teams! Sign up here for our All Access Daily newsletter.
“That’s probably been the biggest pain in the ass, honestly,” Kerrigan said. “Just tying your shoes. ‘Hey, babe, can you open this bottle of water for me.’ Usually, I’m the one opening up the jars and stuff around the house. My wife has kind of taken on that role now.”
The good news is that the protective device on Kerrigan’s right thumb doesn’t seem to be bothering him too much on the field, which is something he worried about when he suffered the injury.
Kerrigan, 33, will be ready to play in Week 1 and said he’s actually been “pleasantly surprised” how well he’s been able to use his hands despite the bandaged right thumb.
“Got my thumb covered up,” Kerrigan said, showing off his protective device. “It’s nothing crazy. I can still grab mostly. I’m feeling good. And like I said, I’m pleasantly surprised with how functional it is.”
NFL
When the injury happened in practice on Aug. 2, Kerrigan didn’t think too much of it. He knew he hurt his thumb but didn’t know the severity until he went in to get it checked out and a subsequent MRI showed more damage. The Eagles announced on Aug. 10 that Kerrigan elected to have surgery.
During his time off the field, Kerrigan said he was able to stay locked in to the mental side of the game. And because it was just a thumb injury, he was still able to run and stay in shape.
With the Eagles, Kerrigan won’t be a starter. Instead, he’ll join a rotation with Brandon Graham, Josh Sweat and Derek Barnett. The good news is that if the Eagles need to reintroduce him to the defense slowly, they’ll have that luxury.
It definitely wasn’t ideal to get injured in his first training camp with a new NFL team after 10 years in Washington, but he feels comfortable entering the opener.
“I’m feeling good now,” he said. “It was definitely frustrating missing as much time as I did. Definitely not ideal at any point, let alone at the start of training camp. But I’m feeling good now, feeling confident. It think that’s the biggest thing whenever you’re coming back from injury, is gaining confidence in using whatever was injured. Feeling good.”
Subscribe to the Eagle Eye podcast:
Apple Podcasts | Google Play | Spotify | Stitcher | Art19 | Watch on YouTube