Today, the New England Patriots and the New Orleans Saints teamed up for the first joint practice session of this year’s training camp. It was also the first full-pad practice for Patriots wide receiver Julian Edelman after he got activated off the Physically Unable to Perform list.
Edelman looked really good in one-on-ones and was able to showcase his trademark quickness early in the session. However, the 30-year old was forced to leave the session after tweaking his left leg. He threw his helmet down in disgust before talking to trainer Jim Whalen and slowly walking back to Gillette Stadium.
Given the importance of Edelman as the Patriots’ number one wide receiver, his injury situation needs to be monitored closely in the upcoming days and weeks. According to Ian Rapoport and Mike Garofolo, however, the team and the player might have dodged a bullet:
Based on the initial exams, #Patriots WR Julian Edelman's injury is not believed to be serious, source said. Will keep checking.
Hearing same as @RapSheet: Early hopes on Julian Edelman are it's not a serious setback.
While this is an early examination, it is certainly good news for the Patriots and Edelman, who had offseason surgery in May to repair a broken bone he suffered during last year’s regular season game against the New York Giants.
If the early reports turn out to be true, do not be surprised to see Edelman held out of the next practice sessions and preseason games in order to let his foot fully heal again.