FOXBORO, Mass. — It turns out that a fraction of Wes Welker is still better than the whole of many others.
Welker had eight catches for 64 yards and two touchdowns Sunday against the Bengals, and he revealed Thursday his left knee won't be 100 percent for, at the very least, four more months.
"It takes a full year until I'm me again, is what they say," Welker said. "I'm just trying to take it a day at a time and do what I can with what I've got right now."
Welker said he didn’t have any problems Sunday with the knee, and it was an "achievement" to get through his first game. This week against the Jets, though, will be an even greater challenge, as the New York defense is a ruthless group that prides itself on planting guys firmly into the turf.
Welker again complained about the brace that feels like a shopping carriage around his knee, but he knows it's necessary. He doesn’t need to look much further than Jets defensive tackle Kris Jenkins, who tore his left ACL on Monday for the second consecutive season. Unlike Welker, Jenkins wasn’t wearing the knee brace, and that’s a hallowing reminder that a little discomfort could be the difference in injury prevention.
"It's a pretty bulky type of knee brace, but I'm able to do what I need to do out there. Hopefully, soon we’ll get it off," Welker said. "We’re going to be cautious with it, but at the same time, I’d like to be without it at some point."
