DeMarvion Overshown’s knee surgery lasted two hours longer than planned. His bones were stronger than expected.
The Dallas Cowboys linebacker tore the ACL, MCL and PCL in his right knee during Dallas’ Week 14 loss to the Cincinnati Bengals. The procedure that followed last month included work on both knees. Overshown said the surgeon took the patellar tendon out of his left knee and used it to fix his right ACL. They discussed pulling from his hamstring and quad but that could lead to losing some speed and power in his legs. His left knee looked healthy on the scan, so they went in that direction.
“I’m out of patellar tendons,” Overshown said. “This is it. You have two good ones. Two good enough to reconstruct your other ACL.”
There were screws already in his surgically-repaired left knee that needed to come out to complete the procedure. The surgeon needed to use a mallet. It broke.
“He said my bone was so strong and so dense that he broke his mallet,” Overshown said. “I got some strong, healthy bones. For people that say drink milk to get strong, healthy bones, that is not true. I do not like milk at all. But according to the doc, I have some of the most dense bones he’s ever seen.”
The 24-year-old was at The Star on Monday as players took part in a final team meeting and cleaned out their lockers. When he initially suffered the injury, there was concern that it was significant enough that he could miss the entire 2025 season. Overshown doesn’t envision that happening.
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“They haven’t really tried to talk timelines with me, just because they know how I am,” he said. “Don’t tell me that I’m going to miss the whole season. Don’t tell me I can play at the beginning of the season. Being me, I’m going to try to get there right now. I think it’s kind of like last year, we’re going to get to the nine-month period, see how I am, start working me in and wait until I’m fully comfortable and healthy.
“I don’t think there’s a point in rushing me back out there or me trying to rush myself back out there, knowing that when I’m healthy, I can come back and do what I was doing when I left the field. I don’t think it’s a big focus right now on getting me back too fast, but I’ll be back playing football for sure in 2025. And it won’t be in December. It will be before that.”
This is the second consecutive year a knee injury has ended Overshown’s season early. He suffered a torn ACL in his left knee in Dallas’ second preseason game during his rookie season in 2023. But he recovered well from that and showed signs of becoming a future star as early as the 2024 season opener at Cleveland. He then continued to make more and more noticeable plays on the field, leading to players like All-Pro pass-rusher Micah Parsons talking about Overshown having Pro Bowl and All-Pro potential.
Despite missing four games this season, Overshown finished second on the team in tackles (90), second in tackles for loss (8) and tied for third in sacks (5). He had one of the team’s top highlights of the season when he tipped a Drew Lock pass to himself and returned it for a 23-yard touchdown in a Week 13 win over the New York Giants. His season came to an end 11 days later.
What a play by DeMarvion Overshown!
📺: FOX pic.twitter.com/HHuNIAaQaO
— FOX Sports: NFL (@NFLonFOX) November 28, 2024
“I had a hell of a season, if you ask me,” he said. “And it wasn’t because I got a pick and some sacks. I was able to play 13 games. Last year, I played zero. … I didn’t take one play for granted because I know how quickly it can be taken from you. Here I am now. I’m back on the road to recovery. It’s been good. Everybody has days, but I’ve never had a day when I’ve said I don’t want to do this any more.”
It would be difficult to find a player with a more positive outlook. It’s rare to see Overshown in a bad mood. He credits his mother for being that way.
“As a grown man, I look back and see what my mom was able to do for me and my three siblings,” he said. “And it’s like, for her to get through that for 18-22 years with no help, it’s a true testament of her faith and how strong she is. This is nothing compared to raising four kids on food stamps, working three jobs, moving from home to home. I always look at tomorrow as another opportunity to be great, to be something, to make a positive impact on somebody. That’s how I go about my days.”
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That mindset helped him overcome last season’s knee injury. The way he approached his recovery led to his teammates voting him the Cowboys’ recipient of the Ed Block Courage Award, given out each season to a player on each team who symbolizes professionalism, great strength and dedication. And no one would be surprised if he wins it again next season.
“I’m the type of guy that likes to roll with whatever life throws at me,” Overshown said. “This is something I know I can get over. It didn’t happen for no reason. That’s how I look at it. It gives me another opportunity to have another great offseason, work even harder, knowing that I just can’t come back to (being) myself. I have to be myself and some, coming off another knee injury. It’s nothing I’m not familiar with. And I’m looking forward to it.”
(Photo: Tim Heitman / Imagn Images)
