NFL Draft hopeful Gunnar Helm shares photo of gruesome injury he suffered at combine… before somehow finishing his drills

Texas tight end Gunnar Helm was hiding a gruesome injury while taking part in NFL combine drills this weekend, new pictures show.

Helm badly twisted his ankle on a false start of the 40-yard-dash, with the injury later diagnosed as a sprain by an MRI.

But Helm managed to finish all of his drills, and photos sent to NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport afterwards show what the 22-year-old was battling through.

Pictures posted to X show significant bruising and swelling on the prospect’s ankle, which in one photo is black and blue.

Rapoport added that Helm did not disclose the injury to anybody until he was finished at the combine in Indianapolis.

Unfortunately, it seems as though the injury hampered his performance, as his 40-yard-dash time of 4.84 seconds was the third-worst among tight ends.

Gunnar Helm could be seen badly twisting his ankle on a false start of the 40-yard-dash

Helm gutted out the injury to complete his drills at the combine, but struggled in certain areas

He also posted the slowest time in the 10-yard-split among tight ends, and the worst mark in the vertical jump compared to his positional peers.

Helm did fare better in the three-cone drill, placing fourth of eight tight ends, while he finished sixth of nine total tight ends in the 20-yard shuttle.

It remains to be seen how – or if – Helm’s combine affects his draft stock, though he is well-regarded by evaluators.

He is graded as the fifth-best tight end in this draft class by NFL.com, who say he will ‘eventually be an average starter.’ 

The only tight ends to have a higher grade from the site are (in order): Penn State’s Tyler Warren, Michigan’s Colston Loveland, LSU’s Mason Taylor and Bowling Green’s Harold Fannin Jr.

If Helm chooses to participate in Texas’ Pro Day, he’ll have several weeks to recover ahead of the March 26 event.