Friday Media Transcript: WR Sterling Shepard

Wide Receiver Sterling Shepard

August 4, 2017

Q: You’re walking without a limp?

A: Yeah, I mean this is just day two with it, we are taking it day by day. I just got out of the underwater treadmill. It is feeling pretty good. I am moving along really well.

Q: What were the last couple of days like for you?

A: I think it was a little bit of over-exaggeration. I saw something online that said I was in tears coming off the field, which was pretty amazing because you guys were two fields over and I had on a mirror visor, so that definitely scared some people. It definitely scared my mother, but we are doing pretty good. It’s moving along pretty well right now.

Q: Were you scared at all by the injury?

A: Yeah, at first I was pretty worried. I have never rolled my ankle like that before and I felt it pop. That was the main thing that scared me. The initial pain wasn’t too good but now, we are moving along and it’s doing pretty good now.

Q: Do you have a timetable as to when you will be back?

A: Taking it day by day. I can’t give you an exact date, but as far as right now, I am feeling really good.

Q: Did you step in a hole or just take a bad step?

A: Yeah, it was a move I do all of the time. It was a prep step and I was supposed to punch on the fifth step and I think the turf moved a little bit and it just rolled my ankle over. They said it went 90 degree, so it wasn’t too good.

Q: Did you think it was broken?

A: I really didn’t know what to expect, but I did not think it was going to be too good.

Q: You said your mom was a little worried?

A: Oh yea, of course. I didn’t tell her anything. I wasn’t going to tell her, but she saw it online or my agent called or something, so she was flipping out.

Q: So there were no tears, I take it?

A: No. Not at all. I was kind of screaming, but that’s just because I have never felt that pain before. But yeah, it’s just like a basketball roll is what they are saying, a little bit of a bone bruise.

Q: Do you expect to play in any preseason games?

A: I don’t know. Like I said, I am just going to take it day by day. If I feel good enough to get out there in some preseason games, then I will, but yeah I am just taking it day by day.

Q: Have doctors given you a date when you can start running?

A: Yeah, I probably could, but I don’t think they want to push it too much. They are taking it day by day as well. Me being me, I want to get out there and start jogging around and running around right now, but they don’t want me to push it. They want me to get back to 100 percent.

Q: Did they give you any sort of timetable? Do you have any expectations?

A: I have some expectations, but that’s kind of different from what they are thinking, I think. I am forced to take it day by day, too, and just listen to what the trainers have to say and go with what they are talking about.

Q: Do you expect to be ready by Week 1?

A: Yeah, of course. I will be ready for Week 1, for sure.

Q: If this took place in September, would you feel like you could wrap it up and go, but right now it is not worth it?

A: Yeah, I think if that was the case, I could wrap it up and push through it and go, but I am happy it happened now and not closer to Week 1. It is definitely a blessing that it didn’t turn out to be anything too serious. So I am blessed.

Q: Do you tape your ankles?

A: No, I don’t tape my ankles. I used to tape my ankles all throughout college. After a little bit of research, I found out that it doesn’t really work that much. The tape loosens up anyway and it’s like having your ankle without anything on it anyway. I stopped doing it when I came here and everything has been fine so far, it’s just that one little slip.

Q: So you are not going to start taping your ankles?

A: I mean I might start just for a little bit, but when it strengthens, I will take it off.

Q: Is that your first time on a cart?

A: Oh no. I got knocked out pretty bad in college, one time in high school, so yeah, it wasn’t my first time on a cart.

Q: What was your first thought when you got hurt?

A: I didn’t have an idea of what was going on and I didn’t know the severity of it, so I was kind of scared at first. But the pain started dying down a little bit, I got to move it a little bit, and it didn’t swell up as much as I thought it was going to, so that kind of eased my mind a little bit. Then when we got the results back from the x-ray and the MRI, everything was pretty clean so it was all good.

Q: It did show a little ankle sprain?

A: Yeah, it did show a little ankle sprain, a little bone bruise, so those things can take a little while, but nothing too serious.

Q: How much of a concern is it that you are going to fall behind with the new stuff in the offense?

A: The new stuff, I have been through it, I have done it. I am one of those guys that if I do it one time and I mess up on it that one time, I will correct it. I don’t make too many mistakes, so I am sitting in the meetings so I shouldn’t fall behind play-wise too much.

Q: How does your ankle feel now compared to when it happened?

A: Oh, it’s 10 times better. They say that after the third day you start to go uphill and it starts to feel a lot better, but it’s day two and I feel like I can go out and jog around a little bit.