Following His Knee Injury at the Combine Last Year, Andrew Vorhees Is ‘Thankful’
Andrew Vorhees recalls the talk quite clearly with the Indianapolis Colts team physician.
Vorhees suffered a right knee injury the day before and collapsed to the ground during offensive lineman drills at Lucas Oil Stadium during the NFL Scouting Combine. Hopefully, it wasn’t too serious. It didn’t hurt all that bad, after all.
The injury to the University of Southern California guard’s draft stock was devastating when the Colts’ doctor determined at 7 a.m. that it was a torn ACL. After a few minutes of “contemplating my new reality,” Vorhees posed a question to the physician.
Should I go try the 225?
The drill for bench presses is the 225. The physician was uncertain and perplexed.
It was allegedly torn. I’m not going to exacerbate the situation, am I?
He had a point, the doctor admitted. Vorhees arrived a few minutes late for the bench press, carrying only a large knee brace to keep his leg straight and a bag of Fritos chips in his stomach. He then drove a medical cart to the stage.
Subsequently, he performed 38 bench press reps, which was four more than anyone else at last year’s Combine.
The video went viral, and the Ravens traded back into the seventh round to select Vorhees with pick No. 229—much later than he would have preferred.
As much a reflection of Vorhees’ character as his performance on the bench press that day can be seen in his reflections on the Combine injury one year later. He is eager to return to the pitch this spring and is in good physical and mental health.
“I express gratitude for all the challenges and opportunities that have arisen due to my injury,” he declared this week at the Under Armour Performance Centre, where he is still training in order to be ready for the 2024 campaign.
“I have faith in who I am. I have faith in this staff. We’ve exerted every effort to restore me to my full potential. Now, it’s only a matter of time.”
Vorhees expressed gratitude for what transpired for a few reasons and repeated the word multiple times.
It was not surprising that Vorhees saw no action on the pitch in the previous year. He claimed that the nine months required for recovery following the injury was simple and went according to plan. However, he did acquire some worthwhile experience.
He was present at all meetings and in the teammates’ locker room. Apart from practicing and playing, he performed all the tasks that a rookie would perform.
Few players are given the chance to’redshirt’ while still a rookie. It has a lot of advantages, according to Vorhees. “My career will undoubtedly benefit greatly from it, in my opinion.
His other job consisted solely of rehabbing, which he tackled at his own pace.
His words, “I’m stronger than ever,” “It’s just scratching days off on the calendar getting ready for OTAs.”
Vorhees is one of several young returning Ravens who will have an opportunity to play significant roles, as Zeitler and John Simpson are both pending free agents. Though there is still much work to be done in Baltimore’s offensive line “rebuild,” Ben Cleveland, Sala Aumavae-Laulu, and Vorhees are currently the front-runners for the two starting guard positions.
In his senior year at USC, Vorhees won the Morris Trophy, which goes to the best offensive and defensive lineman in the Pac-12, and was named an AP first-team All American. His recording
Vorhees claimed he isn’t considering the upcoming competition. All he wants to do is put on shoulder pads and cleats for the first time since 2022.
“What I can control, I will. You are in charge of your mindset and your effort,” he remarked. “Good things will happen if you simply put in a lot of work. I firmly think that to be true. I must always act morally, and this autumn we’ll see what transpires.”
The community he discovered is the other aspect of the past year for which Vorhees expressed gratitude.
The tale of him winning the bench press despite having a torn knee caught on fire, and Vorhees even received messages from legends like J.J. and Hall of Fame offensive tackle Tony Boselli, who was a fellow USC Trojan.
He said, “That was pretty neat.” “It will be interesting for my children to see that later in life. I found that to be a really intriguing effect.
“I am incredibly grateful to be in this position and affiliated with this organisation. Thus far, the experience has been fantastic.
