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A Wisconsin All-American and potential NFL first-round draft pick could have surgery after the Cotton Bowl, according to a report.
The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel’s Bob McGinn reported on Saturday evening that left tackle Ryan Ramczyk “will undergo arthroscopic surgery to repair a torn labrum in his hip” after UW’s Jan. 2 matchup against the undefeated Western Michigan Broncos (h/t Zach Heilprin, Tom Oates). McGinn received the information from some NFL teams’ personnel.
Ramczyk jumped in and excelled at the left tackle spot for Wisconsin’s offense in 2016. The 6’6, 314-pound redshirt junior was honored as a consensus first-team All-Big Ten selection, then was selected as a first-team All-American by Pro Football Focus, Sports Illustrated, Sporting News and USA Today. He also received a Walter Camp second-team All-American honor nod.
Here’s the full post about Ramczyk from McGinn’s article:
Probably the next left tackle is Wisconsin junior Ryan Ramczyk (6-5, 315), who stunned scouts by playing extremely well against Louisiana State in his major-college debut. He played for UW-Stevens Point in 2013-’14 before red-shirting at UW last year.
“LSU has good edge guys and I was saying, ‘Who the heck is the left tackle?’” said another scout. “He matches up with people stride for stride athletically. I was shocked.”
Ramczyk, according to teams, will undergo arthroscopic surgery to repair a torn labrum in his hip after the Badgers’ bowl game.
“It’s a four-month (injury),” said one scout. “He’s very talented. I think he will come out. He’s deciding that right now.”
There was a question if Ramczyk would leave a year early, though many thought he would declare for the NFL draft after his impressive season. There’s been talk of the Stevens Point, Wis., native being a first-round draft selection. Pro Football Focus even listed him as going to the San Diego Chargers at No. 10 in their mock draft this month.
As both Heilprin and Oates noted, if the report is confirmed, Ramczyk would presumably miss the NFL Scouting Combine, Wisconsin’s pro day and any pre-draft workouts—all of which could have otherwise increased his stock further.
#Badgers LT Ryan Ramczyk will undergo surgery to repair a torn labrum in his hip after the bowl game, per @BobMcGinn. 4-month recovery.
— Zach Heilprin (@ZachHeilprin) December 18, 2016
NFL teams told @BobMcGinn that #Badgers LT Ryan Ramczyk will have arthroscopic surgery to fix torn labrum in hip after bowl. Out 4 months.
— Tom Oates (@TomOatesWSJ) December 18, 2016
If #Badgers LT Ryan Ramczyk opts for draft, evaluation will be based on 14 games. Will miss testing, which is where he could drive up value.
— Tom Oates (@TomOatesWSJ) December 18, 2016
[Update Dec. 21]
From B5Q’s Owen Riese’s take:
Ultimately this raises a lot of questions, all hinging on whether Ramczyk decides to declare.
If he decides to stay, that's pretty definitive. His age will be about the only concern, and he'll accumulate more tape against D1 competition for evaluators.
However, if he decides to declare in spite of this that's where most of the question lie. With recovery being at least 4 months, Ramczyk would be unable to perform at the Combine or Pro Day, so he'd be only interviewing with teams at those events. If you're interested in Ramczyk, your opinion on his athleticism shouldn't change whether you see him run in a straight line for 40 yards or how high he can jump. His athleticism is effortless and functional. This will likely have more to do with his age. Ramczyk is a 2012 graduate out of HS, and is going to be a 23 year old rookie, so that's already on the older side of things.
Ramczyk, other than personal preference to return to Madison for another season, doesn't have much upside to staying. He'd be another year older (24) at draft time, and subjects himself to another injury. Regardless of this labrum surgery, he should declare.