The Training Room: Week 1 Injury Updates
After what seemed like the longest offseason in recent memory, Week 1 is almost in the books. A common theme that we were expecting early in the season is the multitude of soft tissue injuries that occurred leading up to the beginning of the season and what transpired during Week 1. The key thing to remember about Week 1 is to not panic! It's a long season, and although COVID-19 may completely turn this league upside down as the season progresses, there should be no reason to jump the gun and start abandoning ship after Week 1 results. We are going to go over the injuries that we currently know about and will edit this post as the week progresses! Keep in mind that soft tissue injuries will likely continue to pop up in the beginning of the season as players get back in the swing of game speed and live action.
Michael Thomas, WR Saints
Injury: High Ankle Sprain
Timetable For Recovery: Ruled OUT for Week 2
Potential Replacement: Tre'Quan Smith, Deonte Harris
Initial Thoughts: This was a foregone conclusion at the beginning of the week when news broke on him dealing with a high ankle sprain. Now we just need to figure out how soon he could potentially come back, which is tough to predict with high ankle sprains. Some mild high ankle sprains could return as soon as 2-3 weeks, but it sounds like this isn't the case. The 4-6 week timetable could be a more reasonable thing to expect given the nature of this injury, but even when he does come back, how effective he'll be will be another thing to keep tabs on. For now, we'll wait to see what things look like next week and moving forward.
Mike Evans, WR Buccaneers
Injury: Strained Hamstring
Timetable For Recovery: Expected to play Week 2
Potential Replacement: Scott Miller
Initial Thoughts: Evans was able to get in a full practice on Friday putting him on track to play more meaningful snaps in Week 2. With Chris Godwin out due to his concussion, look for Tom Brady to rely more on Evans and potentially his TE's to spread out the target share Godwin got last week.
Chris Godwin, WR Buccaneers
Injury: Concussion
Timetable For Recovery: Ruled OUT for Week 2
Potential Replacement: Scott Miller
Initial Thoughts: Well this definitely wasn't something that we were expecting at the beginning of the week. However, concussions can come up out of nowhere and it's good to see players recognize when something might not be right even as he didn't feel any symptoms till midweek. Barring any setbacks or issues, Godwin should be available in Week 3.
James Conner, RB Steelers
Injury: Sprained Ankle
Timetable For Recovery: Expected to play in Week 2
Potential Replacement: Benny Snell Jr.
Initial Thoughts: Conner was able to practice in full for two days straight and was removed off the injury report heading into the weekend. While that is a good sign for his availability, it's hard to say how reliable and comfortable I'd feel using him this week as the Steelers feel comfortable giving Benny Snell more touches moving forward. I guess we'll get a better feel as to what the timeshare looks like after this game if Conner can come out of the game unscathed.
Miles Sanders, RB Eagles
Injury: Strained Hamstring
Timetable For Recovery: Expected to play in Week 2
Potential Replacement: Boston Scott, Corey Clement
Initial Thoughts: MIssing Week 1 seems to have done a lot of good for Miles Sanders as he was able to practice in full all week. I wouldn't have too much concern about Sanders heading into Week 2 against the Rams as he didn't experience any lingering soreness or discomfort during this whole wek!
John Brown, WR Bills
Injury: Sprained Foot
Timetable For Recovery: Expected to play in Week 2
Potential Replacement: Gabriel Davis, Cole Beasley
Initial Thoughts: It seems as though the Bills put Brown on the injury list just to give him a breather midweek. He was back to a full practice on Thursday which means he should have no limitations moving forward as the Bills are set to face the Dolphins this Sunday.
Phillip Lindsay, RB Broncos
Injury: Turf Toe
Timetable For Recovery: Will not play Week 2. Week To Week
Potential Replacement: Melvin Gordon, Royce Freeman
Initial Thoughts: Lindsay will not play Week 2 and it remains to be seen how far past this week he'll miss due to the turf toe pain he has. With the Broncos having Melvin Gordon they don't necessarily have to rush Lindsay back so I would say that Week 3 would be very optimistic given the news we currently have.
Marlon Mack, RB Colts
Injury: Potential Achilles Rupture
Timetable For Recovery: Out For Season
Potential Replacement: Jonathan Taylor, Nyheim Hines
Initial Thoughts: Reports are that the Colts fear Marlon Mack tore his Achilles in their Week 1 loss to the Jaguars. An MRI Monday will confirm what the Colts already know as the training staff normally has a pretty good indication of whether or not the Achilles is ruptured. Regardless, those who drafted Jonathan Taylor could be in for a nice bump in volume and production moving forward.
George Kittle, TE 49ers
Injury: Sprained Knee
Timetable For Recovery: Ruled OUT for Week 2
Potential Replacement: Jordan Reed, Ross Dwelley
Initial Thoughts: Kittle did not practice all week and although Coach Shanahan said that he could still play without practicing, that won't be the case. Knee sprains are challenging, especially to TE's due to having to get up and down constantly to block on the line but also to run routes. I would say Week 3 is extremely optimistic for those who are trying to figure out what to do with Kittle for the short term.
DeVante Parker, WR Dolphins
Injury: Strained Hamstring
Timetable For Recovery: Questionable for Week 2
Potential Replacement: Preston Williams, Jakeem Grant
Initial Thoughts: Parker was having pre-existing hamstring issues before the start of the season and re-aggravated it in Week 1 against the Patriots. He didn't play a ton of snaps in Week 1 so it would be hard to to think that he'll play more snaps than he did given the current physical shape he's currently.
David Njoku, TE Browns
Injury: Sprained Knee
Timetable For Recovery: Placed on IR, eligible to return after Week 5
Potential Replacement: Austin Hooper
Initial Thoughts: The sprain Njoku was dealing with seemed to be severe enough to warrant putting him on IR which will cost him the next 3 games. By then he should be ready to play but we'll keep track of his stuat.
Le'Veon Bell, RB Jets
Injury: Strained Hamstring
Timetable For Recovery: Put on IR, will miss at least next 3 weeks
Potential Replacement: Frank Gore
Initial Thoughts: Le'Veon Bell initially hurt his hamstring in the second quarter, tried to play after the half, but then ended up having his hamstring wrapped up and sat out the rest of the game. Bell being put on IR could indicate that the strain he's dealing with his of more significance and could mean that even after he's eligible to come off IR in 3 weeks he might not be fully ready. We'll keep tabs on his progress to see if anything changes for the better or worse.
Justin Jackson, RB Chargers
Injury: Strained Quad
Timetable For Recovery: Doubtful for Week 2.
Potential Replacement: Joshua Kelley
Initial Thoughts: Justin Jackson exited with his quad issue after only two carries in Sunday's win against the Bengals and did not return. Being ruled out relatively early in the game can either mean they were not willing to risk his health or that the severity of the quad strain is significant enough to be concerned. Regardless, Joshua Kelley stepped up in Jackson's place and played well which could potentially expand his role moving forward. Quad strains are challenging because the quad is directly affected by the constant start, stop, and change direction needed by running backs.
Blake Jarwin, TE Cowboys
Injury: Sprained Knee
Timetable For Recovery: Out For Season
Potential Replacement: Blake Bell
Initial Thoughts: The non-contact injury is definitely a concerning issue as in most cases the ACL is directly involved. There's also potential for a meniscus issue for Blake Jarwin as well based on where he grabbed and the rotational type stress on the knee as his knee buckled. There are reports that initial tests fear an ACL with an MRI pending to confirm the diagnosis. Really tough blow for the young TE.
