Cardinals cornerback Patrick Peterson celebrates a play against the Bengals last season.
Patrick Peterson appeared at the Cardinals' voluntary offseason program for the first time Thursday, although the all-pro cornerback had a reason for the delay – he had surgery to repair a bad right ankle.
But Peterson was in good spirits, wheeling around with his right leg on a scooter and confident in a speedy return.
"I'll be back," Peterson said. "It's a six-to-eight week process. It was just something I needed to get cleaned up and it's going to make me better this year."
The surgery may cost Peterson a chance to get on the field during any of the Cardinals' offseason work, since the team wraps up their summer with minicamp June 7-9. But Peterson should have no problem being ready for training camp in late July.
Peterson couldn't recall the specifics of the injury but admitted it bothered him "a ton" last season. He added that it wasn't one specific injury – Peterson did hurt his ankle against the Bengals – but something that "grew over time."
"I don't like missing games, missing practice," Peterson said. "It was just something I needed to fight through. We just felt this was the proper time to get it done. This will definitely increase my range of motion. I'll be more explosive. Just looking for better results."
He praised the Cardinals team doctors and head athletic trainer Tom Reed in finding a solution.
"We didn't want anything to happen during the season and the next thing you know, I'm going to miss time," Peterson said.
