D.J. Reed Got His Speed Back Thanks to Fred Warner’s Stem Cell Tip
When D.J. Reed went down with a hamstring injury just four games into the 2025 season, he thought his year was over. Hell, he thought he needed surgery.
“It was tough, I’m not going to lie,” Reed told reporters Thursday. “Just with the severity of the strain. I thought that I initially needed surgery.”
But Reed worked through extensive rehab and somehow clawed his way back onto the field two months later. He had to re-teach himself how to walk and run, which sounds exactly as miserable as you think it does. He finished the season starting the final seven games for Detroit.
The Speed Just Wasn’t There
Here’s the thing though. Reed knew something was off when he came back. Not in his legs, but on the tape.
“It wasn’t like I was going out there and I couldn’t run, it was more so like, I was watching the tape and watching how I was covering guys before the injury, I was just more stickier, and I had that burst that I’m accustomed to having,” Reed explained. “Just with watching later in the season in other games, it was the same thing, same technique, but guys were just running by me. I just didn’t have that extra gear.”
That’s the kind of honest self-assessment you want to hear from a guy Detroit just handed a three-year, $48 million contract to. Reed knew he wasn’t right, and he went looking for solutions.
Fred Warner’s Panama Connection
Enter future Hall of Fame linebacker Fred Warner, Reed’s former teammate and close friend. Warner told Reed to look into stem cell treatment, so Reed did exactly that. He headed down to Panama to hopefully speed up the healing process and get his explosiveness back.
“I’ve been going there for not only my hammy from last year, but I get a couple things done while I’m down there,” Reed said.
When asked if he feels like he has his speed back now, Reed was direct: “Yeah, it’s definitely there now.”
Year Two Is Make or Break
This is a critical season for Reed in Honolulu Blue. While he’s got three years on that deal, the third year for 2027 is basically a team option with a $13.6 million option bonus that only triggers if he’s still on the roster by April. Translation: if Reed doesn’t show he’s back to being the sticky corner Detroit thought they were getting, he could be gone after this season.
Reed knows the work isn’t done either. “It feels good, but it’s something that you need to continue to work out and rehab,” he said.
Look, hamstring injuries are tricky as hell, and when a corner loses that extra gear, receivers start looking like Usain Bolt. But Reed’s willingness to fly to Panama for stem cell treatment shows the kind of commitment you want from a guy making that kind of money. Now we get to see if Fred Warner’s tip pays off when the bullets start flying.
Think Reed bounces back to his pre-injury form this season, or are we about to watch receivers torch our secondary again? Let me know in the comments.
