Week 2 Injury Report: Strains, Strains Go Away

After an injury-plagued Week 1, there was no slowing down this week. I’ve summarized all the notable injuries below with historical research to back up my timeframes for time missed. For more injury content throughout the week, check out my YouTube channel for daily injury discussion.

Caleb Williams, QB (CHI)

Injury: Hamstring

Projected Return: TBD

A non-contact injury ruled Caleb Williams out for the rest of the game Sunday. He will undergo an MRI Monday to assess the severity of the hamstring injury. He had difficulty bearing weight and was subsequently carted off the field, though later in the evening he was seen walking around the locker room.

Initially, his difficulty with weight-bearing made me think it was not a lower-grade strain and that he was likely dealing with a grade two, three, or, in the worst case, a tendon avulsion or tear. However, walking around in the locker room is a positive sign that it's not the worst-case scenario. We’ll wait for the MRI for confirmation. Research suggests that a grade two strain would have him miss around 3-4 weeks.

Jayden Daniels, QB (WAS)

Injury: Elbow Dislocation

Projected Return: TBD

A gruesome second dislocation of Jayden Daniels’ non-throwing arm caused the QB to exit the game. Last year, he missed three games, came back and re-injured it, and then missed the rest of the season. Several ligaments around the elbow help keep the joint stable. Likely, after his first dislocation, these ligaments were left a bit more unstable. After each dislocation and further ligament damage, the elbow becomes even more prone to dislocation.

He had an X-ray which was negative for a fracture, though he will likely undergo further imaging to determine any ligament damage.

Best case would be that he misses a similar amount of time as last year, but at some point, you would think that this would need to be addressed surgically to allow improved stability of the elbow and prevent further avoidable re-injuries. If he were to undergo surgery for this now, it would likely render him out for the rest of the season.

D.J. Moore, WR (BUF)

Injury: AC Joint

Projected Return: Week 3-4

D.J. Moore was confirmed to have suffered an AC joint sprain, deemed “not serious”. This makes me think it is a grade one sprain. The average time missed by NFL players for a grade one sprain is about 10 days, giving him a shot to play in Week 3.

Dallas Goedert, TE (PHI)

Injury: Knee

Projected Return: TBD

Dallas Goedert took a hit to his knee while blocking. His knee was planted while the defender drove into his knee, creating what is called a valgus force. This mechanism is most consistent with a medial collateral ligament (MCL) injury. This could be an isolated mild MCL sprain, meniscus tear, or at worst, a combined ACL + MCL tear. We’ll wait to hear the severity.

Jonathon Brooks, RB (CAR)

Injury: Groin

Projected Return: Week 4-5

If you’ve read my articles or tweets before, you know I’ve talked about how recurrent muscle strains can be, particularly in the first game back after suffering one. Jonathon Brooks seems to have aggravated his groin strain. I would expect him to miss at least next week's game to avoid a similar re-aggravation event, but it may be smarter to allow a longer rehab timeline. I would suggest four weeks to prevent another re-strain, but it seems uncommon for NFL athletes to sit that long for low-grade strains.

Mike Evans, WR (SF)

Injury: Hip

Projected Return: Week 3

Mike Evans exited Sunday’s game with a hip injury, though Kyle Shanahan seems to think he could have returned if it was a closer game. I’m concerned that this is a low-grade strain, which would put him at an even higher re-injury risk, considering he dealt with several offseason muscle strains. Let’s hope keeping him out the rest of the game was just a precaution.

J.K. Dobbins, RB (DEN)

Injury: Hamstring

Projected Return: Week 3-4

J.K. Dobbins was always going to be at risk for injury this season considering his extensive injury history. It seems that he picked up a minor hamstring strain. He may return next week, though he will be at significantly higher re-injury risk for at least the next eight weeks.

Jadarian Price, RB (SEA)

Injury: Chest

Projected Return: Week 3

Jadarian Price exited Sunday’s game with a chest injury. It seems like this one is similar to Ladd McConkey’s from last week, likely dealing with a rib contusion after X-Rays came back negative. He’ll have a chance to return next week, but a lot depends on his tolerance to taking contact.

Caleb Douglas, WR (MIA)

Injury: Ankle

Projected Return: TBD

Caleb Douglas injured his ankle while blocking. His ankle twisted outwards while planted, which is a common mechanism for a high ankle sprain with possible medial ankle ligament damage. He left the field in a walking boot, which suggests some form of a sprain. The average return in the NFL for a stable high ankle sprain is approximately 27 days.

Eli Raridon, TE (NE)

Injury: Thigh

Projected Return: TBD

Eli Raridon was gaining momentum before leaving the game with a thigh injury. It’s unclear exactly what happened, but possibly a muscle strain. We’ll wait for further confirmation.

Jayden Reed

Injury: Head/Neck

Projected Return: TBD

A scary compression force to the head caused Jayden Reed to exit Sunday’s game. He’s staying in a hospital overnight for monitoring, but Matt LaFleur stated that he can move his arms and legs, which is obviously a good sign that he avoided a significant spinal cord injury. It’s likely that Reed misses a good chunk of time, but without knowing the exact severity of the injury, it's hard to give a timeframe.

Alec Pierce

Injury: Heel

Projected Return: TBD

Alec Pierce possibly aggravated the ankle that he had surgery on this offseason. Although unconfirmed, he likely underwent talar debridement and bone marrow stimulation to help grow back some cartilage in the ankle. However, the cartilage that grows back, fibrocartilage, is less organized than the original hyaline cartilage. After this surgery, the newer fibrocartilage undergoes remodeling and maturation, which is ongoing for several months, even when returning to play. This puts you at an increased reinjury risk when returning to sport, and may be a result of what we’ve seen with Alec Pierce this week.

David Njoku

Injury: Knee

Projected Return: TBD

David Njoku was carted off with a knee injury. Another one with not a lot of detail to go off. Hopefully he avoided a significant knee injury, but we’ll wait for more updates.

Rico Dowdle, RB (PIT)

Injury: Toe

Projected Return: TBD

Rico Dowdle was injured in the first half and eventually returned. However, he was later ruled out with a toe injury and carted off the field. There are not a lot of details on this one, so we’ll wait for an update.