What is the injury that ended Penn State safety KJ Winston Jr.'s 2024 season after 2 games?
Penn State fans have wondered for months about what injury star safety KJ Winston Jr., suffered that ended his 2024 season after about five quarters. Now, we have the answer. ESPN NFL insider Adam Schefter reported Thursday that the Maryland native, who has now declared for the 2025 NFL Draft, “suffered a partially-torn ACL during a Week 2 practice that ended his season.”
Winston Jr., was clearly not himself in the Lions’ Week 2 matchup with Bowling Green. After recording a career-high 12 tackles and a forced fumble in the opener at West Virginia en route to Big Ten defensive player of the week honors, the safety played just 14 snaps against the Falcons. They ended up being his final ones in blue and white. He finishes his Penn State career with 89 tackles, five pass breakups, one forced fumble, and one interception.
“To Penn State Nation, thank you for making my time here special,” Winston Jr., wrote while delcaring for the Draft. “Wearing the blue and white has been one of the greatest honors of my life, and I’ll always carry the pride of being a Nittany Lion. After much thought and prayer, I’m excited to announce that I will be declaring for the 2025 NFL Draft.
“This has been my dream for as long as I can remember, and I’m ready to embrace this next challenge with the same dedication and heart that got me to this point. Thank you to everyone who has been apart of my journey. This is just the beginning.”
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Will Penn State safety KJ Winston Jr., be ready for the NFL Combine?
“Cowboys head team physician Dr. Dan Cooper performed surgery on Winston’s knee, and he is on pace to be cleared for on-field drills by March 1 ahead of the NFL Draft,” Schefter wrote.
The NFL Combine is set for Feb. 24 – March 3 at Lucas OIl Stadium in Indianapolis. It’s unclear when the safeties will work out. But, since Schefter pointed out the March 1 date, we’ll go ahead and assume it is then.
Winston Jr., spent much of the fall away from his Penn State teammates after suffering the injury. He was back in town for the Ohio State game with a heavy brace on his right leg. After suffering the injury, his focus clearly turned toward rehabbing to prepare for the 2025 NFL Draft. And, he’s now officially heading to it.
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