When fans watch the NFL each week, the focus is usually on big plays, star players, and highlight moments. What most people do not see is the constant battle players face to recover between games. A new study published in 2025 looked closely at how rest days influence one of the most serious knee injuries in football. The findings are important for players, coaches, and anyone interested in athlete recovery and injury prevention.
This study examined extensor mechanism tears in NFL players. These are major injuries that involve the quadriceps tendon or the patellar tendon. When these tissues rupture, the season is usually over and surgery is required. Because these injuries require strong force to occur, researchers wanted to know whether the amount of rest between games affects the risk.
The researchers reviewed every quadriceps tendon and patellar tendon tear that happened in the NFL between the 2009 season and the 2023 season. They focused on injuries that happened after Week 1 and used public injury databases to confirm each case. Once they identified injuries, they divided them into three categories based on recovery time. Short rest meant fewer than seven days between games. Normal rest meant exactly seven days. Long rest meant more than seven days.
A total of fifty eight injuries met the criteria. When the research team compared short rest to normal rest, they found no major difference. This might surprise people who believe that Thursday Night Football dramatically increases injury rates. However, the real difference appeared when they compared both of these groups to long rest weeks.
Players were almost five times more likely to suffer an extensor mechanism tear with short rest compared to long rest. They were also more than three times more likely to sustain the same injury with normal rest compared to long rest. In simple terms, the more time the knee has to recover, the better protected it is. Long rest weeks appear to reduce the strain on the quadriceps tendon and patellar tendon, making a major knee injury less likely.
The study also looked at playing surface. Extensor mechanism tears were more common on turf fields compared to natural grass. This finding supports what many players and sports medicine professionals have said for years. Turf can increase stress on the knees during planting, cutting, or sudden deceleration.
For players and coaches, these results reinforce the importance of sports recovery, strength training, and load management. Tendons take longer to recover than muscles, and heavy workloads without enough rest can gradually weaken the tissue. For fans, this research helps explain why some injuries seem to come out of nowhere. Often it is not one single moment. It is the buildup of fatigue, reduced recovery time, and the constant demands of professional football.
For anyone involved in training or rehabilitation, the lesson is simple. Recovery matters. The body needs time to adapt, repair, and rebuild tissue. Whether you are an NFL athlete or someone who exercises at the gym, more recovery time often means stronger and healthier movement patterns.
If you would like a more detailed breakdown from a physical therapy perspective or want guidance on injury prevention strategies for your team or training program, reach out anytime.