Chad Pennington Tears His ACL, So Much for Another Comeback

Chad Pennington is a man of many comebacks. Heck, he's a two-time NFL Comeback Player of the Year, but his latest quest to return to the gridiron hit a snag when the former Dolphins QB tore his ACL while playing basketball. He'll undergo knee surgery for the injury and was...

By Kyle Munzenrieder

March 31, 2011

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Chad Pennington is a man of many comebacks. Heck, he's a two-time NFL Comeback Player of the Year, but his latest quest to return to the gridiron hit a snag when the former Dolphins QB tore his ACL while playing basketball. He'll undergo knee surgery for the injury and was recovering from his fourth shoulder surgery.

Details are in short supply, but Pennington, 34, tore the anterior cruciate ligament in one of his knees -- though no reports on which one -- while playing pick-up ball. He'll undergo surgery April 7. Pennington was still recovering from a February 1 surgery to repair his elbow after it sustained a season-ending injury in 2010.

Pennington is a pending free agent but was hopeful about returning next year, possibly to the Dolphins.

"I'm going to make a run at it, and the reason I am is that I still have that fire inside," Pennington told the Palm Beach Post in January.

But recovery from ACL surgery generally takes six to ninth months, so this might be the final nail in the coffin for Pennington's career.

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