Jamaal Charles Injury Update: Chiefs RB Is 'Hungry' To Play

After playing in only two games before tearing his knee last season, Kansas City Chiefs RB Jamaal Charles recently told the media he is itching to get on the field again:

"I'm hungry. I want it this year. I've got the passion for it. I can be patient. I just can't wait to play football, I can't wait to bring stuff back to this community and show how much we can win. And I feel like this is a year for us, that we can go all the way because I can feel it. And me, I feel I can bring a lot to the team this year being bigger and stronger, and I don't know, maybe even faster. I can wait awhile. In my mind, I want to get back out there because I want to see where I'm at, but I feel like I'm already there, so I can just wait. Just like when I had my shoulder surgery, I waited the whole training camp to go back. I didn't do anything really during OTAs or minicamp."

Charles, headed into his fourth season in the NFL, knows that his time is limited to get the type of big-money contract healthy RB's of his caliber receive in free agency.

For more news and notes on the Chiefs offseason, check out Arrowhead Pride.

Chiefs Running Back Jamaal Charles Confident In Healthy Return To NFL

There was no denying that Jamaal Charles was among the top two or three running backs in the entire NFL before he went down with a season-ending ACL injury last season. Unfortunately with Charles went the Kansas City Chiefs' season. Now both hope to bounce back in 2012, and the Chiefs are going to need Charles to return to his game-breaking ability before the injury. Charles is confident that won't be an issue.

Recently the Kansas City Star's Adam Teicher spoke with Charles. The back's message was clear.

Jamaal Charles says he will return as the same player he was before knee injury ...

— Adam Teicher (@adamteicher) May 8, 2012

Charles: "if you're worrying about me not being the same, just look out for me this year."

— Adam Teicher (@adamteicher) May 8, 2012

Last year, Charles rushed 12 times for 83 yards before the injury. The year before, Charles averaged an incredible 6.4 yards per carry over the course of a full NFL season -- good enough for 1,467 yards on 230 carries.

For more news on Berry and the Kansas City Chiefs, check out Arrowhead Pride, and for everything you need in pro football, visit SB Nation's NFL page.

Eric Berry Injury Update: Chiefs Star Safety Says 'My Knee Feels Great'

The Kansas City Chiefs were missing a lot of players last season due to injury, and many of them were impact level players. While a case can definitely be made for Jamaal Charles, and rightfully so, perhaps the player missed most was star safety Eric Berry who played only four snaps in the regular season and forced the Chiefs to play back-ups a significant amount in 2011.

Now Berry says his rehab is going well and that his knee feels “great.” That’s good news for the Chiefs coaching staff and fans who need him to return now that Peyton is in the division. When asked about his rehab in a recent interview with WHB, Berry gave the good news.

"Right now I’m doing very good. My knee feels great. I’m actually down in Florida training with my trainer, so everything’s looking good. Been doing a lot of drills, lot of working out, lot of weights. Just trying to make sure I’m ready to go this season. As you know, I got hurt at the beginning of the season so I’ve had a lot of time to sit back and let my body rest and let it heal up. So right now I’m just very anxious to get back on the field. Everything’s looking good, so I’m just gonna continue to work hard and just make sure I’m ready to go come fall."

When asked about the toughest part of it all, he noted the beginning of the rehab process when everything is fresh from the operating table:

"Toughest thing about the rehab is right after surgery, the day after, they move your leg," Berry said. "So they get to bending your leg right after surgery. That was one of the toughest things — just not being able to walk around and move about how you want. That was probably the biggest thing, but other than that I can’t really complain about having an injury like that. Because there were a lot of people in there who had been in car wrecks who had to have their legs amputated while we were down there.

“A guy actually passed away like right after we met him,” he continued. "He was an amputee and he had tendinitis in his other leg that he did have, and he passed away like a week later after we met him. Me and Jamaal (Charles) and Tony (Moeaki) were like really shocked after that. So we were like, shoot, we’re not gonna worry about this ACL, it could always be worse. So we just looked at it as a positive thing and just kept working and trying to get better."

When specifically asked about Peyton’s presence in the division, Berry didn’t linger on it but he did admit the team had to “step up” if they want to supplant the Broncos in the division.

"It is what it is. Only thing we can do is just prepare for it, make sure that we’re ready and just step up to the plate. I guess that was the best deal for the Denver Broncos to get. But either way, I love a true Volunteer, but at the same time that’s our division. We’ve just gotta step up to the plate and be ready to play."

For more news on Berry and the Kansas City Chiefs, check out Arrowhead Pride, and for everything you need in pro football, visit SB Nation's NFL page.

Romeo Crennel Will Be Cautious With Jamaal Charles' Recovery

In an interview with Chiefs.com, new Kansas City head coach Romeo Crennel indicated that he didn't want to rush Jamaal Charles' return to the field after the star RB tore his ACL early in the 2011 season:

"You don't want him coming back too soon and then reinjuring himself," Crennel said from the NFL Annual Meeting in Palm Beach, Florida. "You talk to them about that, you have the trainer talk about it, his physician has to talk about it because when they do start feeling good, they want to do more."

"Jamaal stopped by the office recently," Crennel said. "He came in for a check-up and he stopped by the office and I had a chance to talk to him and he was saying that his knee is doing well. He is running straight ahead, so he is making good progress."

For Charles, a RB who used elite speed to become one of the NFL's rising stars, recovery is even trickier, as he will need to be 100% in his leg to regain the form that let him rush for 3,027 career yards on 6.1 yards a carry.

More importantly, he'll need to have full confidence in his recovery to rush confidently through traffic, especially since defenders will likely test the stability of his knee in the middle of piles.

Check out Arrowhead Pride for the latest news and notes about the Chiefs off-season.

Scott Pioli Expects Jamaal Charles, Eric Berry And Tony Moeaki To Be Ready For 2012 Season

The last year was a tumultuous one for the Kansas City Chiefs mostly because they experienced so many season-ending injuries early on. Jamaal Charles was lost in the second game of the season. Tony Moeaki was down before that. Eric Berry and Brandon Siler were lost for the defense. Matt Cassel was injured around the season’s midway point. All in all, the Chiefs were dreadfully unlucky with injuries after a very fortunate year in 2010. Now Scott Pioli, the team’s general manager, says the Chiefs expect all players to be back and ready to play in 2012.

Jamaal Charles has kept a public profile updated on Twitter saying that his rehab is going well, and today at the NFL Combine, Pioli said the same. He also stressed that the Chiefs expect Berry and Moeaki back as well, giving the Chiefs some impact players they sorely missed last season.

There’s still a lot of work to do on the Chiefs roster, but getting these guys back will help more than any other acquisition. After all, the team was already on the rise and they just need to stay healthy and consistent.

Jamaal Charles Injury Update: Chiefs Running Back Expected To Be Ready For 2012 NFL Season

The upside to tearing your ACL in the second week of the NFL season - if there is such a thing - is that your entire rehab schedule gets pushed up!

Jamaal Charles Tweeted out that he's visited the Chiefs facility for a physical this week and that his rehab is on schedule for a full return in time for the 2012 season:

Physical went great today in KC!! They're going to ease me in OTA & I'm on schedule to be back when the season starts!! Let's go #Chiefs

The gang at Arrowhead Pride are trying to jog the collective KC memory as to Charles' upside:

I'm wondering this morning if it's possible that I've forgotten how awesome Charles is. In the words of Bart Scott, can't wait!

Here's a hint - In 2010, the tailback combined for almost 2,000 yards rushing and receiving for eight touchdowns, numbers that were sorely missed down the stretch last fall.

For more news on Jamaal Charles and the Kansas City Chiefs, check out Arrowhead Pride, and for everything you need in pro football, visit SB Nation's NFL page.

Jamaal Charles Injury Update: Knee Is 'Feeling Great' According To Chiefs Running Back

In 2010, the year the Chiefs last won the AFC West title, the team’s offense was in orbit around one player’s dynamic skill: Jamaal Charles. It’s not surprising, then, to link Charles’ season-ending knee injury last season in game two and the team’s inability to win the division once again. However, good news is coming from Charles who says via Twitter that his rehab is going well.

Recently he wrote, “I’m a 1 man wreckin Cru!!! #25 My knee is feeling great! Got my swag back”. There’s still a considerable amount of work and rehab to go, but for Charles to be on schedule (or even ahead of it) is key for the Chiefs to return to form in 2012. Thomas Jones continues to get older. Jackie Battle stepped up impressively but had an injury of his own. The Chiefs need Charles at the center of activity once again if they are to put enough points on the board.

Jamaal Charles Injury Update: Chiefs RB Is 'Ahead Of Schedule' In Rehab