Stokley: Broncos should see improvement from ‘healthy’ Wolfe, Paradis
May 24, 2018, 12:00 AM | Updated: 10:57 am
Despite what might be debilitating injuries to everyday people, Derek Wolfe and Matt Paradis have fought through pain to become not only leaders for the Denver Broncos but top-level players in the National Football League.
So, with both finally feeling 100 percent healthy after undergoing offseason procedures — Paradis on his hips and Wolfe on his neck — the two finally have a chance to utilize offseason workouts.
“It’s been an exciting offseason because I haven’t been able to work out to build strength since like my sophomore year of college,” Paradis said Wednesday. “It’s been a very exciting offseason to squat again — I haven’t done that in forever. It’s been a lot of fun.”
Wolfe said with a laugh Wednesday, “What neck injury?”
“No, I feel great. It’s one of those things that needed to be fixed for a long time. I was really just putting Band-Aids on it for the last probably four years,” Wolfe said. “Got the surgery, got it cleaned up. It’s all healed up. I feel strong again. I feel great.”
After hearing Paradis on Wednesday, “Stokley and Zach” co-host Brandon Stokley said he could tell just by his voice how “refreshed” he is.
“… Just the weight off of his shoulder just being healthy and going out there and being able to train,” Stokley said.
And with Wolfe, Stokley said, it felt the same way.
“He said he had been dealing with it for three years or something like that,” Stokley said. “They had known about it, but they just didn’t have enough research to be able to go in there and feel comfortable with the surgery. Now they did, and he says he feels great, which is great news.”
It’s a point of emphasis, Stokley said, because Wolfe and Paradis can go out and train and not have to worry about injuries.
“It just drains you mentally, puts you in a bad mood, when you’re constantly dealing with injuries and trying to rehab it,” Stokley said.
And because of that, it’s likely the Broncos will see a leap in performance out of two established starters.
“I think we’re going to see a lot better football player. He’s already a really good football player. I think we’re going to see a lot better football player with Matt Paradis,” Stokley said. “And Wolfe, the same thing with his neck.”
Follow digital content producer Johnny Hart on Twitter: @johnnyhart7.
