Otah Ready to Go in ‘09

Jeff Otah, the 6-foot-6, 330-pound tackle in his second year with the Carolina Panthers, isn’t expecting to have trouble with his ankle this year in the upcoming football season. Otah spent a majority of last year on the sidelines while nursing a high ankle sprain he suffered in his last year playing at the University of Pittsburgh, but now that he’s had time to rest up to heal the injury, Otah is looking for the 2009-2010 NFL season to bring more prosperous results.

So far (after the Panthers’ summer school practices so far,) Otah’s ankle is still holding up, and he addressed time off as one of the biggest benefits to his well-being, saying, “That really helped the ankle heal. I felt it (healing) a little bit (during the season), but now it just feels great. I don’t feel it at all.” This month’s OTAs have already been an improvement for Otah from this time last year, as the tackle spent the first week of his rookie season benched due to the ankle injury. Pushing last season’s injuries out of his mind, Otah said, “I wish I wouldn’t have gotten hurt last year, but it happened. I think it made me stronger as a player. This year I’ll try to keep it clean.”

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