This 3rd round choice of Lions Since the 2021 draft has traveled an uneven route last year with several medical slowdowns. The rocky path crashed and burned the great hopes for Ifeatu Melifonwu, who came out of a second half -firing of the 2023 season when he recorded five bags and two interceptions.
Who can forget this climate interception on Christmas Eve, 2023, to win the NFC North …
Ankle injury
Melifonwu’s injuries started at the beginning of 2024. He appeared in the second pre-season match (August 17, 2024) but may have been injured during this match. It was not easy on video when and how this injury occurred.
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Listed subsequently with an ankle injury, there must have been the hope that it would come back soon because it was not placed on IR (reserve reserve) immediately. His investment on the IR was delayed until week 3, five weeks after the injury.
IR delay suggests an uncertainty of injury or worsening. This ankle problem continued to linger for months after the opening of his practice window on November 6, which was week 10.
Due to the prolonged absence as well as the uncertainty of the return, it is suspected that the ankle injury was more a problem of Achilles tendon. Achilles tendonitis can have an uncertain recovery because neither the player nor the medical team want to take a risk that it turns into a complete rupture of Achilles. This was played in particular last year with Christian McCaffrey, who had a prolonged and delayed return from his bilateral tendonitis of Achille.
Left fracture
The setbacks of his season were not over, because on November 19, only 13 days in his 21 -day training window for the ankle, he suffered a left fracture in practice. He was put back in IR for the second time.
First appearance of the season
On December 15 (week 15), Melifonwu was finally able to make his first appearance of the season compared to the Bills. During the next four games, he played a high number of shots on defense ranging from 60 to 80%. Although he did not picked up an interception and had only one bag, he played a precious role as a versatile piece in the back-7.
Stump of hamstrings
In his fourth match, which was the eliminatory match against the commanders, he set off his right-ups in the 3rd quarter and did not return. The severity of the hamstrings is unknown but is not suspected of being serious.
Prospects
It is unlikely that the hamstrings and the fracture of the hands will be a problem in the future. The mysterious ankle (maybe Achilles?) Who took about three months to recover could be something to look at.
Professional career
Melifonwu finished his 4 -year recruit contract with the Lions and became a free agent without restriction of this offseason. He ended up signing a one -year contract with dolphins with a guaranteed 2.45 million dollars bonus, up to $ 510,000 and incentives up to $ 1 million. Although he is young (26 years old) and turned out to be a hard -hitting player on the ground, his reliability concerns have probably created the reluctance of Lions and other teams to give him a long -term agreement.
This article originally appeared on Lions Wire: Top 10 news from the Lions season 2024 n ° 9: Ifeatu Melifonwu
