Tennessee Titans cornerback Caleb Farley and wide receiver Robert Woods are on very different sides of the spectrum in terms of their NFL careers.
Farley is about to embark on his first season as a starter, while Woods is already an established veteran starter who has proven himself over nine seasons in the NFL.
What they do have in common is the fact that both suffered a torn ACL during the 2021 campaign.
But the pair weren’t alone in rehabbing their way back from the serious knee injury, as Woods and Farley worked together quite a bit this offseason, challenging each other and forming a bond along the way.
“It just kind of evolved,” Woods said of his relationship with Farley, per John Glennon of Sports Illustrated. “The timeline of our injury was kind of around the same point when I came in and rehabbed. So we were kind of always doing the same drills, and then even just challenging each other in the weight room.”
The veteran wideout went into more detail about how the pair would push and help one another.
“I was [asking Titans director of sports medicine Todd Toriscelli], `can we run that hill?’ And then me and Caleb are running that hill once a week. I think that was really just us pushing each other, challenging each other,” Woods explained.
“[Farley] also had a track background, and we know how important it is to be able to run and drive off the ball,” he added. [We would] start on the hill, start on this conditioning, kind of just pushing each other, showing what helps my knee, what hurts his knee, what hurts my knee and vice versa — being able to find ways to strengthen it in different ways.”
Woods, who has been a class act and a good player during his career, is the perfect guy to work with Farley as he continues to work his way back and acclimate to the NFL game, and that isn’t lost on the second-year pro.
“I think he’s been the Rams’ most productive receiver the last five years, so just to have his knowledge, his experience, and then he’s a great teammate also,” Farley said. “Just to have that guy there helping me through this offseason talking football has been something huge for me.”
While Farley can’t do much to instill knowledge in a veteran like Woods, the Virginia Tech product’s youth alone has been something that’s benefitted the 30-year-old.
“It’s just really having someone who’s young, being able to keep me young and just work and run, really just feel youthful like that,” Woods said. “He’s big, he’s strong, he’s physical and he’s fast.”
The Titans will be relying on both players for key roles in 2022, with Woods set to be the team’s No. 1 receiver and Farley the starter opposite Kristian Fulton.
However, both players come with a major question mark, as there’s no telling if either will be themselves in the first year back from a torn ACL. Adding to that, Farley only played three games during his rookie season, thus the jury remains very much out on him in general.
But Farley couldn’t have had a better rehab mate to work with, and it would appear you could say the same for Woods. Hopefully that translates to good play on the field for both in 2022.
