Bakhtiari spoke with reporters for nearly forty minutes on Friday in the team’s Lambeau Field locker room. He disclosed that he would be undergoing his fifth knee surgery in an effort to return to the field. He also talked about the challenges he has faced since sustaining a catastrophic injury to his left knee during a practice on December 31, 2020, and what needs to be done in order for him to continue pursuing his career.
Bakhtiari, who last played in the Packers’ season-opening victory against Chicago on September 10, stated, “We know what we need to do for me to be back.” Though it’s not ideal, that’s currently pretty much my game plan. I have to follow this path now that we have a plan in place.
This new path, which started with a recent arthroscopic treatment, will next involve an operation by orthopedic physician Brian J. Cole of Chicago to address a cartilage problem.
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Bakhtiari would not specify the date of the procedure.
“I want to be prepared for training camp the next year,” he declared.
The ball-shaped ends of the femur at the knee joint are called femoral condyles, and this is where his problem lies. Although Bakhtiari’s anterior cruciate ligament and the meniscus damage he sustained during his initial injury were healed during the Jan. 7, 2021, procedure, Bakhtiari said his doctors were aware of a problem with that area of his femur.
The problem was that doctors were unable to determine if the anomaly in his knee would give him problems in the future. It was found out that during his recovery from the original injury, Bakhtiari severely damaged the cartilage at the end of his femur, which caused inflammation and a buildup of fluid in his knee.
According to Bakhtiari, “where it rubs in my knee,
it’s basically like sandpaper; it’s simply not smooth,
which is causing a lot of fluid.” “It’s just a flaw in me,”
He went on, “I would have loved it if I had said, ‘Yeah, let’s perform this surgery,’ on January 7th, 2021. Since it is evidently what it is,. However, nobody was aware. You don’t wish to take on more work than is necessary.
With one year left on his deal, Bakhtiari, who turned 32 last week, may choose to leave the Packers after this season. He has a $40.5 million salary cap for 2024, so if he were to return, it would have to be under a different contract.
“I detest Dave’s current circumstances. Head coach Matt LaFleur expressed sympathy for the player. The Packers (2-2) take on the Las Vegas Raiders (1-3) at Allegiant Stadium on Monday night.
“He has been struggling relentlessly to try to return.” Unfortunately, he suffered a serious injury, and I believe those repercussions are still being felt. That was known to me at the time.
“He’s made every attempt. He’s itching to get outside and play ball. He has exhausted every possibility to return, but his knee is not reacting properly.
Only 13 of Bakhtiari’s 131 career games with the Packers have been played in the last two or more seasons. Bakhtiari was selected in the fourth round of the 2013 draft out of Colorado.
He played in one game in 2021, the team’s regular-season finale against Detroit, but two weeks later he was ruled out of the team’s NFC divisional playoff match. Last season, he only participated in 11 of 17 games due to knee problems and an emergency appendectomy late in the season.
On Friday, he spoke clean about maybe having played his last down with the only NFL team he has ever known.
Before the injury, Bakhtiari had started 118 of a potential 127 games. “I’m not disregarding that possibility,” he declared. “I hope to continue playing here until I make the decision to stop.
“That’s just life; whatever occurs will happen. Great if it does. If not, there’s only so much I can do about it. It’s excellent if I can continue playing here.
