NFL Week 10 Injury Report

Photo Credit: Andy Millis/The Star-Ledger

Injury Updates

After sustaining a mid-foot sprain week nine, Ben Roethlisberger was slated to be the Pittsburgh Steelers’ backup quarterback while Landry Jones got the start against the Cleveland Browns. However, during the first quarter, Jones injured his ankle and had to leave the game. It was almost out of a movie that Roethlisberger was dressed and ready to step in. Even though Roethlisberger was still in the recovery process for his injury, he completed 22-of-33 passes for 379 yards with three touchdowns.

Malcolm Floyd has been very vocal in saying that his season is not done yet. Floyd is currently listed as questionable for Sunday’s game against the Kansas City Chiefs despite having a torn labrum. San Diego Chargers head coach Mike McCoy said that Floyd is “day-to-day” after taking advantage of a bye week 10.

Although Carolina Panthers linebacker Luke Kuechly has been dealing with an ankle injury for the last week, it doesn’t look like it. Kuechly led his undefeated team in tackles Sunday against the Titans.

Dallas Cowboys linebacker Sean Lee successfully passed concussion protocol and returned to practice on Wednesday. Cowboys head coach Jason Garrett said he’s “optimistic,” but “will take the situation day-by-day.”

Season Ending Injuries

New York Jets running back Zac Stacy underwent season-ending surgery on his ankle Friday. Stacy fractured his ankle Thursday night returning a kickoff. Chris Ivory and Stevan Ridley are now the team’s only healthy running backs.

On Monday, New York Giants wide receiver Victor Cruz announced that will undergo season-ending calf surgery. Cruz tore the patellar tendon in his right knee back in 2014. “This hurts mainly because I worked so hard to come back from my patellar tendon surgery,” Cruz said. Giants coach Tom Coughlin said the Cruz’s situation is “very disappointing.”

The Tennessee Titans lost Justin Hunter after the wide receiver fractured his ankle. Hunter was carted off the field and will under go season-ending surgery. He’s expected to return for the team’s training camp next season.

Key Injuries

Week 10 was especially tough on the Denver Broncos. Not only did they lose to division rivals the Chiefs, but they also had to bench their star quarterback Peyton Manning. Manning was 5-of-20 for 35 yards and four interceptions before leaving the game. The Broncos benched Manning and backup Brock Osweiler got the start. Broncos coach Gary Kubiak announced on Monday that Osweiler will start again this week against the Chicago Bears as Manning deals with a partially torn plantar fascia in his left foot.

In week nine, the New England Patriots lost key running back Dion Lewis. Week 10 took the team’s star wide receiver Julian Edelman. Edelman was injured at the end of the first quarter when he broke a bone in his foot Sunday against the New York Giants. NFL Media’s Albert Breer reported that the receiver had a screw inserted into his foot on Monday and will be out 6-8 weeks. Danny Amendola and Keshawn Martin are two receivers in the running to fill the void Edelman leaves behind.

Other Injuries to Watch

Cleveland Browns wide receiver Andrew Hawkins was admitted to the hospital after taking a blow to the head in the team’s 30-9 loss to the Pittsburgh Steelers. Hawkins was hit by linebacker Jarvis Jones and was taken to the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center. Hawkins’ brother posted on Facebook that the receiver “has no memory of what happened and is very confused.”

An MRI this week revealed that Philadelphia Eagles quarterback Sam Bradford separated his shoulder and was also diagnosed with a concussion following Sunday’s loss to the Miami Dolphins. The injury to Bradford’s shoulder is not to his throwing arm, but he could still miss Sunday’s upcoming game while going through the league’s concussion protocol.

Also going through the league’s concussion protocol is Eagles running back Ryan Mathews. Mathews suffered a head injury against the Dolphins and still has not been cleared to play.

Good News

After eight long weeks without their star quarterback, it looks like the Cowboys will finally have Tony Romo back. Romo suffered a broken clavicle back in week two. Since then, the Cowboys have lost seven consecutive games with Brandon Weedon and Matt Cassel at quarterback. Hopefully, the return of Romo will give the Cowboys the energy to win Sunday against the Dolphins.

It was a scary scene in Seattle after Arizona Cardinals left guard Mike Iupati was rushed to the hospital after going down with a neck injury. Fortunately, the X-rays, MRIs and CT scans all came back negative, according to Cardinals general manager Steve Keim. Iupati says he’s still “pretty sore,” but was in good spirits on Monday.

Be sure to check the comments section for updates throughout the week.