Lamar Jackson, Taylor Heinicke Avoid Major Injury

NFL Week 14 – The NFL retained last season’s relaxed injured reserve rules for 2021, meaning that any player who is placed on injured reserve after the final roster cutdown day is eligible to return to practice after missing three weeks. As a result, we will continue to distinguish between players who will be placed on injured reserve (IR) and players who will likely miss the entire remainder of the season (Season).

As teams are eliminated, they become more likely to place their players on injured reserve with relatively minor injuries. Therefore, any injuries to eliminated teams under other injuries unless they are injuries to major players that are likely to affect the 2022 season.

Packers Offensive Tackle Billy Turner—Knee

Packers offensive tackle Billy Turner suffered what appeared to be a significant knee injury against the Bears on Sunday night, but the exact injury has not yet been announced. When asked about the injury, head coach Matt LaFleur expressed his hope that Turner can return this season. Given the mechanism, that makes the most likely diagnosis an MCL sprain. Such injuries to offensive linemen usually cause at least a four-week absence, with around one-in-four ending the player’s season. That would mean Turner could realistically hope to be back for the playoffs, but he may miss the rest of the regular season. We expect to see more precise news later today.

Quarterback Aaron Rodgers aggravated his toe injury, with surgery being considered as a last resort. The immediate plan is for him to continue to rest and rehab the toe, and to see how it responds during the week. Either way, the team believes that he will avoid any missed time.

Ravens Quarterback Lamar Jackson—Ankle

Listed here only because of his high profile and the alarm surrounding him today. Ravens quarterback Lamar Jackson sprained his ankle against the Browns, but head coach John Harbaugh emphasized that the injury is not a high-ankle sprain. That gives Jackson a very strong chance to play in Week 15: only around one-in-four low-ankle sprains to quarterbacks cause missed time. Of those that do cause missed time, most players return within a week or two. At the very least, Jackson should be fine well in time for the team’s prospective playoff appearance.

Defensive lineman Calais Campbell injured his thigh. Most thigh injuries to defensive linemen do not cause missed games, and less than half of those that do cause missed time cause an absence of two or more weeks.

Giants Defensive Lineman Leonard Williams—Elbow (IR)

Giants defensive lineman Leonard Williams injured his elbow against the Chargers. Though around 75% of elbow injuries to defensive linemen are minor, the team believes that Williams is among the less fortunate 25%. Of those, around half cause an absence of at least five weeks, which would be long enough to end Williams’ season.

Falcons Safety Erik Harris—Chest (IR)

Falcons safety Erik Harris left the game with a chest injury, the mechanism of which suggests an injured pectoral. Pectoral injuries to defensive backs are usually bad news: around 60% cause an absence of at least four games, and 45% are season-ending. If confirmed, with only four weeks to go, Harris will likely miss the rest of the season either way. He should be fine for the start of the team’s offseason program.

Edge rusher Dante Fowler injured his calf. Around half of calf injuries to linebackers cause missed time, but only around 15% of players who suffer them miss more than two weeks.

Linebacker Emmanuel Ellerbee injured his knee, but no further information is yet public.

Concussions

The following players left their respective games with concussion symptoms and enter the league protocol:

• 49ers cornerback Ambry Thomas
• Bears cornerback Xavier Crawford
• Football Team receiver Terry McLaurin
• Football Team tight end Sammis Reyes
• Packers receiver Equanimeous St. Brown
• Texans safety Justin Reid

Based on our current data, a growing majority of players now miss at least one game following a diagnosed concussion, but around 80% return within two weeks.

Other Injuries

49ers linebacker Azeez Al-Shaair injured his elbow against the Bengals and the team is awaiting MRI scan results to determine the injury’s severity.

Bears quarterback Justin Fields has a contusion on his left hand, but the team does not expect it to pose a significant problem. Linebacker Roquan Smith injured his hamstring. Around 65% of hamstring injuries to linebackers cause at least one missed game, but only 25% miss more than two.

Bengals defensive end Trey Hendrickson left Sunday’s game with back spasms, but the team expects to have him available against the Broncos in Week 15. Tackle Riley Reiff left the game early due to the ankle injury that has been troubling him in recent weeks. Cornerback Chidobe Awuzie also left early due to his existing foot injury. Neither player is expected to miss future games, but they may be limited in practice.

Bills receiver Emmanuel Sanders injured his knee against the Buccaneers, but head coach Sean McDermott had no update on him at his media conference. McDermott expects to have an update later in the week.

Browns halfback Kareem Hunt hurt his ankle against the Ravens and will have a precautionary MRI scan taken today, but the team believes he could have returned to the game if required and he is not expected to miss time.

Buccaneers halfback Giovani Bernard left the game with a hip injury and the team is still trying to determine both the nature and severity of the ailment. Cornerback Jamel Dean left the game feeling woozy and will be monitored to determine whether that is due to illness or something more sinister such as a concussion.

Chargers halfback Austin Ekeler appears to have tweaked the ankle injury that had him on the injury report last week, but head coach Brandon Staley does not believe that the injury is significant.

Cowboys left tackle Tyron Smith re-injured the same ankle that caused him to miss three games earlier in the season, but the team does not know the severity of the injury. Opposite number La’el Collins was suffering from cramps prior to his ejection against Washington.

Football Team quarterback Taylor Heinicke will have MRI scans taken on the knee he injured against the Cowboys, but the team believes that he will be fine to play against the Eagles in Week 15. Center Tyler Larsen is having scans taken on his injured Achilles. The fact that the injury has not already been announced as season-ending is encouraging. Around half of non-rupture Achilles injuries cause missed time, and the typical recovery time for those that do is two to four weeks.

Jets defensive lineman Quinnen Williams injured his shoulder against the Saints but returned to the game with a harness. With the Jets eliminated, they may choose to sit Williams rather than rush him back. Halfback Austin Walter left the game early due to illness.

Lions rookie cornerback Jerry Jacobs tore his ACL and will miss the rest of the season. He is likely to miss most of the team’s offseason program and may begin the 2022 season on Reserve (PUP). Linebacker Alex Anzalone is considered day-to-day with the ankle injury that caused him to miss all but the first quarter in Week 14.

Panthers cornerback A.J. Bouye left the defeat against the Falcons with a foot injury. Without further specifics, we cannot project the likely recovery duration. We expect to learn more about the injury later today.

Seahawks rotation defensive lineman Bryan Mone is likely to miss time with the knee injury he suffered against the Texans. Mone was listed with an injury during the week, but this is reportedly to the opposite knee.

Texans linebacker Kamu Grugier-Hill appeared to suffer a significant knee injury against the Seahawks, but initial scans showed only a sprain and no ligament rupture. He may be able to play in Week 15, depending how the injury responds to treatment. Halfback Rex Burkhead injured his groin; around 50% of groin injuries to halfbacks cause missed time, but most players who suffer them return in around two weeks.

Titans fullback Tory Carter left Sunday’s game with an ankle injury, but no further specifics are yet public.