Injured Jet Washington upbeat on long road back
Photo credit: Kathy Kmonicek | The Jets' Leon Washington is recovering from his broken leg and not worrying about offseason contract negotiations.
FLORHAM PARK, N.J. - Leon Washington now has a better appreciation for the smaller luxuries, the simple tasks he was able to do easily before he broke his right leg nearly a month ago.
"Monday, I took my first shower in three weeks," Washington said Thursday, addressing the New York media for the first time since his gruesome injury. "I'm telling you, it's the little things in life. I've been taking bird baths. That felt really good. I think I stayed in there for 30 minutes with the water running over me."
Washington, who's in the final season of his four-year rookie deal, hopes to be moving around well by March. He faces an uphill, six- to 12-month recovery period after suffering a compound fracture of his right tibia and fibula on his first carry in Oakland on Oct. 25.
The dynamic 5-8, 195-pound Pro Bowl running back/kick returner immediately heard a pop, although he said it felt as if the pop didn't come until later.
"I've never done anything like this before, so I'm thinking of the ramifications," Washington said. "How long will I be out? What part of my leg did I break? You hear people say tibia and fibula, but most people don't know exactly where that is. [I was] just trying to register all that information and then got off to the sideline and I saw blood coming through my sock. When I saw that, it's kind of like 'OK. That's a little serious.' "
Washington's mind was racing during the lengthy cart ride to get X-rays underneath the stadium. He needed a two-hour surgery at Alta Bates Summit Medical Center in Berkeley, Calif., to insert a rod into the tibia to stabilize the fracture.
The most pressing concern with such a traumatic injury is the risk of infection. That possibility led the Jets' training staff to talk to others who had suffered similar injuries, such as Oakland's Michael Bush and former NFL running back Musa Smith.
Infection would necessitate repeating the operation, but Washington said he's "98 or 99 percent" past the potential infection stage. He's been hanging around the Jets' training complex lately, getting his rehabilitation work in. He's focused on heel-flexing, toe-flexing and strengthening his quadriceps and hamstrings until he can walk.
"To see him back here with a smile on his face, that's a great sign," said fullback Tony Richardson, Washington's close friend. "My biggest thing is to encourage him because I've been injured before and on injured reserve, and you feel like the lone man out because you are not in the same routine."
Washington turned down an offer believed to be $5 million per season before the season started because he was looking for a more lucrative deal. Even with a base salary of $535,000 this season, he said he didn't have any regrets about not staging a lengthy holdout or having a long-term deal in place.
"When the season is over, we'll revisit and see where we'll go," Washington said. "I miss football more than anything else. If football was a sport that we play and not get paid for, I would be one of the guys to play. I love to play football and that is what I look forward to getting back to. Once that happens, everything else will fall into place for me."
