Reed clears a big hurdle; this one's not a fence

[ChiTownBull]

http://www.mcall.com/sports/columnists/all-sptcolumn-aaug08,0,216584.column?coll=all-randomcolumnistssport-misc

Eagles special teams coordinator John Harbaugh concluded earlier in training camp that it is high time to evaluate J.R. Reed for what he is, as opposed to what he is not.

So, now we know, after his first game action in 18 months, that he is once again a player.

Not a guy depressed by a freak accident, thinking he would never be able to set foot on a field again. Not a guy who had to be brought back to reality by his fiancée.

Just a player.

''Things are feeling real natural right now,'' he said late Sunday night, after he appeared in the Birds' 16-10 preseason loss to Oakland in the Hall of Fame Game. ''I feel normal. I feel good. I feel like a football player again. I don't feel hurt. I don't feel injured. I just feel regular.''

Which was a long time coming, after he damaged the peroneal nerve in his left leg in February 2004, while jumping a fence on his property in Florida.

His stats in his first game since the Super Bowl were nothing to write home about  one kickoff return for 19 yards, two tackles as a backup safety, one pass defended.

But that wasn't really the point. He was back on the field again, doing what he loves to do. And, he said, ''I feel perfect. I feel good. I feel blessed.''

Starting safety Brian Dawkins wasn't completely surprised.

''I've seen it in practice,'' he said. ''I've seen him make plays in practice.''

At the same time, Dawkins said, ''To know where he came from, [to know at] the low point that the prognosis did not look good, and doctors were telling him his chances of walking, let alone playing, were slim  first of all it's a tremendous, tremendous effort on his part. It's also a blessing.''

The low point was really low, and really long. It came not long after he completed a 2004 season in which he returned kickoffs at a 23.1-yard-per-return clip, second-best among NFL rookies.

That's when he tried to hurdle the fence, caught his foot and damaged the peroneal nerve, which aids in the movement of one's foot and leg. And that's when doctors told him that, at age 22, his career was over.

''I was in Florida and I flew back to [Philadelphia] the next day and they told me that,'' he said. ''The next day.''

Somebody asked whether he believed it.

''Not when they first told me,'' he said. ''But after a couple months, [when] there's no progress, I believed them. … I was bedridden for three months. I was depressed.''

His fiancée, Stacci Sastre, bucked him up, got him moving. And, while he missed the entire 2005 season, doctors fitted him with a special brace that allows him to run.

Still, there were doubts. The Eagles drafted another safety, Sean Considine, last spring. They employed other kickoff returners, most notably Bruce Perry. They gave every impression that they were ready to move on without him.

But before minicamp this past spring, Reed said, ''I just showed up one day and said, 'Coach, I think I can play.'''

He has since proven that. He was used on the first-string kickoff return unit Sunday, and saw extensive action in the defensive backfield as well. He was as aggressive as ever in both roles.

On one second-half play, he went for the splatter hit on Raiders receiver Kevin McMahan, who was guarded by cornerback Joselio Hanson. All three men wound up colliding, and all three were slow to get up.

No big deal, Reed said later. Just a case where he got the wind knocked out of him. Just a football play, the kind of thing players are always involved in. Players like himself.

''It felt good out there,'' he said. ''I felt just like my old self.''

gordon.jones@mcall.com

610-820-6628

[MikeG]

that is great news

[applepj]

JR shows what he is really made of.  Nothing but the best for him.