Oregon TE Pharaoh Brown Attempting Comeback in 2015
Even in the high-flying Oregon Ducks offense, it’s not easy to miss Pharaoh Brown.
Brown checks in at 6-foot-6, 250 pounds, and he’s extremely quick for his size. In terms of his movement skills and ability to make plays all over the field, Brown sort of reminds me of Julius Thomas, the Jacksonville Jaguars tight end.
The star tight end for the best offense in college football seemingly had it all figured out. A breakout season in 2014 as a junior would pave the way for him to make his way to the NFL, until a humbling injury against Utah last year that required season-ending and nearly career-ending surgery.
According to this article, doctors literally had to cut Brown out of his Oregon uniform and perform three surgeries, and were merely hours away from amputating his leg. Such an injury seems like a far too daunting one to come back from for a football player, but Brown is not only attempting it, he still has dreams of making it into the NFL.
Despite the injury last year, Brown was honored as a first-team All-Pac 12 selection and finished with 420 yards on 25 catches with six touchdowns, but his work as a blocker also got him noticed. When healthy, Brown is one of the best dual-threat tight ends in college football, and you can see evidence of that on his game tape.
Plus, the Oregon offense necessitates it.
With such a serious knee injury, there’s no need for Brown to rush his way back to the field, and he’s not even ruled out taking a redshirt this season.
In an interview back in February, Brown talked about being unsure if he would play in 2015.
“People ask me am I going to play, am I going to redshirt,” he said. “I mean, this is a career decision, so I want to make sure my stuff is fully healed, that I can do everything and not rush back. That’s why I don’t even look that long out. If I’m able to play, I’ll play. If I’m not, I’m not.
“I’m not getting out there till I’m 100 percent healed and not only 100 percent healed but 100 percent in my mind that I’m healed. A lot of people get out there and are timid to cut. When I’m on the football field, I’m a different guy and I only know how to play one way — that’s fast. I play hard, real nasty. I can’t take it soft. I know how I play and how I gotta be to play at that level.”
Courtesy of his Instagram page, it looks like Brown is making progress toward playing on Saturdays as of a few weeks ago.
Here’s hoping one of the best tight ends in the country gets back out on the field sooner rather than later.