Siposs hopes to be back for playoffs
Punter Arryn Siposs said Thursday he was a day removed from having the walking boot from his injured left leg removed and that he was hopeful to return in time for the Eagles’ first playoff game next weekend.
“Right now the training staff is happy with how the recovery is coming and making progress,” Siposs said. A return by next weekend “is kind of what I’m hoping for. I can honestly say I can’t put a [timeline] on it, but my mindset is to be back for the next game.”
The right-footed Siposs was placed on injured reserve after he suffered an ankle injury on his plant leg at the New York Giants on Dec. 11. He missed the final four games of the regular season and the Eagles were forced to sign a new punter, veteran Brett Kern, off the street.
The 37-year-old Kern did little to suggest that Siposs would lose his job. He averaged 40.8 yards with a 36.6-yard net on 10 punts over four games — numbers that would be last and second to last in the NFL if he qualified. Siposs averaged 45.6 yards with a 39.6 net before his injury. Both his averages, though, are near the bottom of the league — 25th and 29th — as well.
Siposs showed that he was more capable of booming punts, though, and had been getting more consistent before his setback. His injury occurred when his punt was blocked just before the half at MetLife Stadium. The former Australian rules football player scooped up the ball and nearly ran for the first down. But he stepped out just short of the marker as he was hit and his ankle bent.
Siposs said he not only suffered a high ankle sprain, but also a ligament tear. He said he initially thought his season was over. But he wore a cast for three weeks, and then the boot, and said doctors told him surgery wasn’t necessary and he could likely be back in the postseason.
“Obviously, I’m lucky in terms of the circumstances, but I wouldn’t change anything given making sure I got to do my part for the team,” Siposs said of his actions after the block.
He said he expects to start kicking in practice Friday or next week, and if he can’t be back for the divisional round, he hopes by the NFC championship game if the Eagles advance.
As Siposs was getting off the field in North Jersey, the TV broadcast caught him apparently delivering some choice words to Giants fans in the stands above the end zone.
“I was in a moment, obviously, of vulnerability, in terms of not knowing what’s going to happen,” Siposs said. “Instincts kicked in a little bit. … I just wasn’t willing to take any crap from anybody, and that’s including people up in the stands that happened to be wearing blue that day.”