Thursday night injury update: Watkins, Marshall
Stephania Bell
ESPN Senior Writer
Thursday games always present a challenge for players because of the tight turnaround time from the previous week. As the weeks progress and seasonal fatigue becomes an issue, teams often lean toward the conservative approach when it comes to Thursday night playing decisions.
Even early in the season, injury concerns exist and fantasy owners have decisions to make. This week the primary focus is on one top wide receiver who entered the season as an injury question mark … and the questions remain.
Note: To better understand the NFL's new injury reporting language, click here.
Buffalo Bills
Sammy Watkins (foot; questionable), wide receiver
Watkins entered the season with lingering concerns related to his April foot surgery, when he had a screw implanted to repair a stress fracture in his left foot. As expected, the team increased his activity gradually throughout training camp, and Watkins saw his first competitive action in the third preseason game, although it was limited to just two series. After sitting out the preseason finale, Watkins was considered rested and ready for Week 1.
In the season opener, Watkins had four receptions for 43 yards on six targets and appeared no worse for the wear. However, alarm bells sounded the next day with reports that Watkins was being evaluated for soreness in his foot. Watkins attempted to silence the alarms, telling reporters he was not dealing with pain, but rather, his foot felt tired.
"I'm not in any pain. It's not about the pain,” Watkins said. “It's about just being smart. I got it checked out and it was fine."
In Watkins’ defense, the nature of these injuries warrants caution, even as an athlete returns to action. The feedback a player provides as to how the foot feels with increasing activity is critical for the medical staff in knowing how to adjust his program. Foot fractures, even after there is demonstrable healing on imaging, are still at risk for re-injury while the bone continues to remodel itself, a process that can continue for many months. Some players will return without incident. Others will suffer setbacks that will require them to undergo a secondary procedure. Each player’s injury situation is different, and there are multiple variables that can factor into when a player can return and whether there is a future complication.
As the athlete increases his activity, he is advised to alert the medical staff as to how the foot responds. Considering Watkins went from two competitive drives in the preseason to a full game in the season opener, it would not be unexpected for his foot to feel tired or sore. By communicating with the medical personnel, any symptoms can be evaluated -- as they were in the case of Watkins -- and the team and Watkins can proceed accordingly. As Watkins noted, his foot checked out fine, but he is likely to continue getting it checked after upcoming games until he reaches a point of feeling confident that it has fully recovered.
“I knew I was playing at a high rate, playing fast, so I wanted to make sure everything was fine. I might do it after the next game, and the next game," Watkins said. "There's no particular reason why I did it, I just felt the need to do it, and if I feel the need to do it again, I'm probably going to do it every week.”
In other words, the alarm bells in this case may have been overblown. That said, there is an ongoing risk of injury recurrence, simply because of the nature of these types of fractures. Other NFL players -- including two wide receivers in 2015, Dez Bryant and Julian Edelman -- have had similar injuries that later required secondary procedures. While their situations are not identical to that of Watkins, it does serve as a reminder that he is not out of the woods until he can look back at the end of a complete season, knowing he did not suffer a setback. Until that point, there will be some risk, although it should diminish progressively with time.
As for now, part of the management of Watkins is moderating his activity, especially on a short week. He did not practice Monday or Tuesday, although he did dress for the walk-through after working with the rehab staff on Tuesday. On Wednesday, the Bills also conducted a walk-through, listing Watkins as a limited participant (projecting what his activity would have been in a full practice). The team officially lists him as questionable, although Watkins said earlier in the week that he plans to play, and his coach, Rex Ryan, did not disagree with him.
Fantasy owners should check pregame inactives to be sure.
New York Jets
No longer on the game status injury report
Brandon Marshall (hip) and Quincy Enunwa (ribs), wide receivers
These two players, originally listed on the practice injury report this week, have been removed from it and should be presumed available for Thursday night’s game. Enunwa was listed as limited on Monday because of a rib injury but was a full participant Tuesday and Wednesday. Marshall was a full participant throughout the week.
Being removed from the injury report reflects the new reporting language, as both players likely would have been listed as probable in years past. Now they are simply off the report.
Stephania Bell
ESPN Senior Writer
Thursday games always present a challenge for players because of the tight turnaround time from the previous week. As the weeks progress and seasonal fatigue becomes an issue, teams often lean toward the conservative approach when it comes to Thursday night playing decisions.
Even early in the season, injury concerns exist and fantasy owners have decisions to make. This week the primary focus is on one top wide receiver who entered the season as an injury question mark … and the questions remain.
Note: To better understand the NFL's new injury reporting language, click here.
Buffalo Bills
Sammy Watkins (foot; questionable), wide receiver
Watkins entered the season with lingering concerns related to his April foot surgery, when he had a screw implanted to repair a stress fracture in his left foot. As expected, the team increased his activity gradually throughout training camp, and Watkins saw his first competitive action in the third preseason game, although it was limited to just two series. After sitting out the preseason finale, Watkins was considered rested and ready for Week 1.
In the season opener, Watkins had four receptions for 43 yards on six targets and appeared no worse for the wear. However, alarm bells sounded the next day with reports that Watkins was being evaluated for soreness in his foot. Watkins attempted to silence the alarms, telling reporters he was not dealing with pain, but rather, his foot felt tired.
"I'm not in any pain. It's not about the pain,” Watkins said. “It's about just being smart. I got it checked out and it was fine."
In Watkins’ defense, the nature of these injuries warrants caution, even as an athlete returns to action. The feedback a player provides as to how the foot feels with increasing activity is critical for the medical staff in knowing how to adjust his program. Foot fractures, even after there is demonstrable healing on imaging, are still at risk for re-injury while the bone continues to remodel itself, a process that can continue for many months. Some players will return without incident. Others will suffer setbacks that will require them to undergo a secondary procedure. Each player’s injury situation is different, and there are multiple variables that can factor into when a player can return and whether there is a future complication.
As the athlete increases his activity, he is advised to alert the medical staff as to how the foot responds. Considering Watkins went from two competitive drives in the preseason to a full game in the season opener, it would not be unexpected for his foot to feel tired or sore. By communicating with the medical personnel, any symptoms can be evaluated -- as they were in the case of Watkins -- and the team and Watkins can proceed accordingly. As Watkins noted, his foot checked out fine, but he is likely to continue getting it checked after upcoming games until he reaches a point of feeling confident that it has fully recovered.
“I knew I was playing at a high rate, playing fast, so I wanted to make sure everything was fine. I might do it after the next game, and the next game," Watkins said. "There's no particular reason why I did it, I just felt the need to do it, and if I feel the need to do it again, I'm probably going to do it every week.”
In other words, the alarm bells in this case may have been overblown. That said, there is an ongoing risk of injury recurrence, simply because of the nature of these types of fractures. Other NFL players -- including two wide receivers in 2015, Dez Bryant and Julian Edelman -- have had similar injuries that later required secondary procedures. While their situations are not identical to that of Watkins, it does serve as a reminder that he is not out of the woods until he can look back at the end of a complete season, knowing he did not suffer a setback. Until that point, there will be some risk, although it should diminish progressively with time.
As for now, part of the management of Watkins is moderating his activity, especially on a short week. He did not practice Monday or Tuesday, although he did dress for the walk-through after working with the rehab staff on Tuesday. On Wednesday, the Bills also conducted a walk-through, listing Watkins as a limited participant (projecting what his activity would have been in a full practice). The team officially lists him as questionable, although Watkins said earlier in the week that he plans to play, and his coach, Rex Ryan, did not disagree with him.
Fantasy owners should check pregame inactives to be sure.
New York Jets
No longer on the game status injury report
Brandon Marshall (hip) and Quincy Enunwa (ribs), wide receivers
These two players, originally listed on the practice injury report this week, have been removed from it and should be presumed available for Thursday night’s game. Enunwa was listed as limited on Monday because of a rib injury but was a full participant Tuesday and Wednesday. Marshall was a full participant throughout the week.
Being removed from the injury report reflects the new reporting language, as both players likely would have been listed as probable in years past. Now they are simply off the report.
