Packers cornerback Eric Stokes chooses to emphasize the good parts of his NFL career rather than dwelling on the bad. So don’t think about the games he’s missed. Focus on the comeback.
Green Bay selected Stokes, the former Georgia standout, in the first round of the 2021 NFL Draft. Yet after a solid rookie season, he’s played in only 12 games scattered over the past two years. First it was a fractured foot, then a bad hamstring. One injury caused the other.
“Everybody got a little story. Everybody got a little thing,” Stokes told reporters this past week as the Packers went through phase three of OTAs.
“This just taught me so many lessons, taught me so many different little things that I can’t wait. I can’t wait. This a new Eric. Well, I wouldn’t say new. He’s pretty much the same, but just a better, experienced, more ‘It is what it is’ type of stuff.”
First for some background. The Packers cornerback saw his second season end early because of a Lisfranc foot injury. Then last season, he strained his hamstring in training camp. Stokes played in only three games in 2023.
Two Packers players consulted specialists at Wisconsin
But there’s reason for the Packers to think Stokes will he fully healthy this season. Back in January, he and Christian Watson each consulted specialists at Wisconsin’s Badger Athletic Performance. Doctors there figured out that Stokes’ surgically-repaired foot wasn’t fully healed. That put pressure on his hamstring.
Packers coach Matt LaFleur said Stokes looks “fully healthy” out at OTAs.
“I think he’s as good as I’ve ever seen him, both mentally and on the field,” LaFleur told reporters. “He’s doing a great job of challenging our wide receivers. He’s always in great faith. I think you see that personality is back.”
LaFleur added: “He’s had a chance to really develop his body. He looks in great shape. I think the play says the same.”
Stokes conceded that he grew frustrated over his injuries. Who wouldn’t feel that way?
“Of course, from the start, I was mad,” said Stokes. “I was frustrated, everything just going wrong … But at the end of the day, it’s a bigger picture with everything. It was a lesson I had to go through for every little thing. Now, it’s time to show.”
The specialists at Wisconsin told him how to strengthen his hamstring, calf and foot. He then spent time in Atlanta, working on those parts of his lower body. He told reporters he “feels faster than I was before.”
The Packers went with an offensive lineman in the first round back in April rather than selecting a defensive back. The secondary has a rejuvenated first rounder in Stokes.
“Hands down, I haven’t had this much fun since my rookie year,” Stokes proclaimed.
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