Linebacker Bucannon ready, eager to return
BOB MCMANAMAN
In case anyone in the Cardinals’ locker room hadn’t heard the news, cornerback Patrick Peterson made sure he shouted it out at the top of his lungs.
“He’s back!” Peterson yelled. “The original money ’backer is back!”
It’s been a long, lonely wait, but Cardinals inside linebacker Deone Bucannon is, indeed, back, having finished his first full week of practice with the team since suffering severe ligament damage in his ankle last season during a Week 14 loss to the Dolphins.
“I am (back),” Bucannon said, laughing. “You heard it from Pat himself."
He may not play a ton on Sunday when the Cardinals (1-2) host the 49ers (0-3), but he definitely will play and be involved in several defensive packages, according to coach Bruce Arians.
Rookie Haason Reddick, who has filled in as the starter during Bucannon’s absence, will continue to have an active role.
It remains to be seen how effective Bucannon can be right away, however, considering that until this week he hadn’t had any real contact since the injury.
Asked what just getting him back does for the defense, Arians said: “A lot more speed and a lot more toughness. He brings all the heart when he plays.”
Those are Bucannon’s strengths in a nutshell. It’s why the Cardinals moved him from safety and created a position just for him his second year in the league, in 2015. It’s paid off for the Cardinals, too, as Bucannon has led the team in tackles each of the past two seasons even last year when he missed Arizona’s final three games.
Kept out of all offseason drills and placed on the physically-unable-to-perform list for virtually all of training camp tested Bucannon’s mettle and emotions. It wasn’t easy and there were a lot of dark days during his road to recovery, as there are with most individuals trying to overcome a serious injury.
“This was one of my first obstacles ever as a football player,” he said. “Even since I was younger, I really haven’t had any major injuries. … But the guys around here and God really got me through it. I’m keeping my head forward and staying positive. I couldn’t be in a better place.”
True to his style of play, Bucannon said he missed the contact more than anything. He’s been known as one of the team’s bigger thumpers and his hits on opposing ball carriers are loud. They can often be heard through the thick panels of glass all the way up inside the press box at University of Phoenix Stadium.
“I really did (miss the contact), yeah. I just missed being out there,” he said. “I missed the brotherhood. And watching from the sideline was even worse because you see everybody making plays and doing things to help the team and really can’t do anything about it.
“But now I can, so I’m happy about that. … I’m going to try to make up for lost time.”
Bucannon said his weary rehab schedule made it feel like time would often stand still. “Days were longer, weeks were longer, months were longer,” he said. With each timeline for a significant step, there was often doubt and anxiety as to whether he would meet it.
It got even tougher when the day after being activated off the PUP list, he experienced a setback and rolled his ankle. It turned out to be a blessing, Bucannon said, because it gave him even more time to heal and feel right about himself.
To get over the hump, however, he turned to veteran defensive tackle Frostee Rucker, who went through the same surgery last season and faced the same questions. It was Rucker, he said, who helped convince Bucannon to have the surgery and not try to play through the pain.
“You just have to be a big brother and that’s what I tried to do,” Rucker said. “... That surgery and that ankle injury took away my whole season last year and I couldn’t help my team and I felt so bad. But I told him, ‘Don’t rush it. Make sure you’re healthy,’ because you only get two ankles for the rest of your life.
“We talked about some of the things that helped me in my rehab and I just let him know what was going on because it would be a disservice for me not to do that. … I know that without the support I got from my family and all the people that helped me, I don’t know where I would have been, mentally.”
Bucannon said he will know he’s back for real when he delivers his first big hit on a 49ers player.
“I pride myself on just leaving it all out there for my teammates,” he said. “I’m not going to back down from any challenge. My teammates know that. I’m a physical guy and I like being in the mix. I’ve always been a competitor.”