For left tackle Duane Brown, the 2016 offseason is one of the biggest of his NFL career so far. The eight-year veteran is currently working his way back from a season-ending quadriceps injury suffered in the Jan. 3 season finale against Jacksonville.
"Coming along great, man," Brown said on Tuesday's Texans All Access radio show. "Tomorrow will be five weeks out of surgery. Off of crutches, which is a big step for me. It's healing pretty well. I'm pretty amazed at the recovery I've had so far. Long road ahead of me, but just taking it one day at a time and looking forward to getting back."
The All-Pro has been fortunate enough to finish each of his NFL and college seasons in relatively good physical health. In fact, the last major injury for Brown occurred over a decade ago. During his senior year of high school, Brown broke his fibula and spent two and a half months recovering.
"This is definitely the toughest injury to come back from in my career in the biggest offseason, I think, of my career," Brown said. "Going into my ninth year, this is a huge offseason for me but I'm looking forward to it. It's a big challenge and I'm always up for a challenge."
Fitted with a leg brace, Brown is currently working to regain his range of motion. For the first few weeks after his Jan. 6 surgery, he was required to keep his leg as straight as possible but says his mobility has increased.
"It's feeling pretty good so far but getting to where I can bend it all the way and just working on that quad strength," Brown said. "To get it back to where it was, or possibly even stronger, that's the goal."
