As week eight comes to a close, unfortunately we saw several big-name players again go down with injury. The San Francisco 49ers continue to be ravaged by injury, as they likely lost both George Kittle and Jimmy Garoppolo for the remainder of the season. Kittle fractured a bone in his foot, and Garoppolo re-injured his high ankle sprain. Add in Tevin Coleman, who was recently activated off IR due to a knee injury, re-injured the same knee and is awaiting additional imaging.
On Thursday night football Teddy Bridgewater suffered a potentially serious neck injury, but thankfully got lucky and no significant injury was done. He should play in week nine. In that same game, unfortunately Falcons elite wide receiver Calvin Ridley suffered a midfoot sprain which would likely keep them out a couple of weeks.
Week nine should finally see the return of elite running back Christian McCaffrey. Fellow running backs Miles Sanders, Nick Chubb, Joe Mixon, Mark Ingram and Aaron Jones are all likely to miss at least one more week with their respective injuries.
The Packers play
on Thursday night, and Aaron Jones’ calf injury likely has not had enough time to heal to allow him to play on Thursday.
We found out that Jacksonville Jaguars’ quarterback Gardner Minshew has been playing with multiple fractures and a ligament injury in his throwing thumb. Whether or not he needs surgery, he is likely to miss the next 2+ weeks.
Jets quarterback Sam Darnold re-injured his throwing shoulder, as he was dealing with an AC sprain and is questionable to play in week nine. Jamison Crowder is still dealing with a groin injury and has missed the past several weeks. Breshad Perriman also failed to play in week eight secondary to not clearing the concussion protocol yet.
The Colts saw Michael Pittman return after suffering that crazy injury where he had to undergo emergency surgery on his calf. Parris Campbell should not be too far behind him. Unfortunately T.Y. Hilton suffered a groin strain and is likely to miss at least a week, maybe a couple. Rookie running back Jonathan Taylor, who has disappointed so far, at least based on expectations, suffered an ankle injury and his week nine status is in question.
The Rams Darrell Henderson Jr. re-injured his thigh, but appears to be able to play after the bye. Cooper Kupp, fresh off of a monster game, appears to have injured his wrist. Expect additional imaging to rule out possible fracture.
The Seattle Seahawks backfield was really banged up going into week eight, as Chris Carson, dealing with a midfoot sprain, and Carlos Hyde, dealing with a hamstring strain both missed the game. Travis Homer, who is dealing with a bone bruise in his knee, and DeeJay Dallas both saw carries.
The Steelers Diontae Johnson seems to be injured more than he has been healthy. He injured his hamstring early in the game, but still managed to run the most routes on the day, but only managed to catch one pass on the day.
The Lions Kenny Golladay suffered a hip injury, that looks like it may keep them out a couple weeks, and he is a possible temporary IR candidate.
The Tennessee Titans Adam Humphries sustained a scary back and neck injury, but thankfully managed to avoid any life-changing injuries other than a concussion after being carried off on a stretcher.
Surprisingly the Eagles activated Dallas Goedert, less than a month after sustaining a non-displaced fracture in his ankle, only one week before their bye week. He was not very effective in his first game back. Jalen Reagor, also activated, flashed his potential and reeled in a touchdown. Miles Sanders should return after their bye, possibly Alshon Jeffery too.
