Tag: Injury Update

Caleb Foster hurts ankle in the second half against Wake Forest, Scheyer says

Freshman guard Caleb Foster suffered a suspected ankle injury in the closing half against the Demon Deacons, head coach Jon Scheyer revealed after the game.

Kyle Filipowski wasn’t the only Blue Devil injured after halftime against Wake Forest on Saturday.

Freshman guard Caleb Foster, who has started the past several games for Duke, injured his ankle during the second half against the Demon Deacons, according to postgame comments from head coach Jon Scheyer.

Foster played 22 minutes against the Demon Deacons, scoring eight points on 3/5 shooting with three rebounds and an assist.

The 6-foot-5 North Carolina native is averaging 7.7 points, 2.4 rebounds, and 2.2 assists per game this season, and he’s shooting 43.7% from the floor and 40.6% from beyond the 3-point line.

He’s appeared in all 27 of Duke’s games this season, and Saturday was his 15th start of the season.

Foster’s best game of the season came against Pittsburgh shortly after the new year began when he scored 16 points on nine shots and added six rebounds and five assists.

Miami’s Nijel Pack won’t play against Duke on Wednesday

Miami head coach Jim Larrañaga said on Tuesday that the junior guard, who is averaging 13.7 points per game, won’t play against the Blue Devils.

Miami junior Nijel Pack won’t play against Duke on Wednesday, according to Hurricanes coach Jim Larrañaga.

South Florida Sun Sentinel beat reporter Adam Lichtenstein shared Larrañaga’s confirmation on social media.

The third-year guard missed Miami’s last game, a Saturday loss to Boston College, with what was called a lower extremity injury. He’s missed three games so far this season.

Pack is averaging 13.7 points, 3.6 assists, 2.6 rebounds, and 1.0 steals per game. He’s shooting 40.5% from the floor and 36.4% from beyond the 3-point line this season, and he’s one of only four Miami players averaging double-digit points per game this year.

Pack spent the first two seasons of his collegiate career with the Wildcats before he transferred to Miami ahead of the 2022-23 season.

The Hurricanes guard has scored 19 or more points in seven games this season, including a season-high 28 points against his former team in November. He also dropped 25 points against Clemson, 23 against the Wolfpack, and 20 points against North Carolina.

Billy Napier provides injury update on QB Graham Mertz

Graham Mertz went down with a fractured collarbone in November, but Billy Napier has little doubt that his quarterback will be ready for spring camp.

Florida quarterback [autotag]Graham Mertz[/autotag] went down with a fractured collarbone against Missouri last year, preventing him from playing the final game of the season against Florida State. Mertz announced his return to the Swamp over the offseason, now we know when he’ll be back on the field for the Gators.

Head coach Billy Napier provided a critical update on Mertz Wednesday during his national signing day press conference.

“Graham will definitely be ready to go,” Napier said when asked about Mertz’s availability for spring camp.

The Gators begin camp on March 7 and finish on April 13 with the Orange and Blue Game. Hopefully, Mertz picks up right where he left off in 2023 as one of the most accurate passers in the country.

The bad news is that Napier couldn’t say as much for Shemar James, Justus Boone or Cam Carroll. Boone and Carroll are both coming off ACL tear suffered during the fall, and James’ season ended against Georgia with a dislocated kneecap that required surgery.

“I think some of those others that you mentioned are to be determined,” he said. “We’ll keep you updated, but Graham will be ready.”

James is the heart of the defense and was projected to return for spring practice at the time of his injury. Now that Mertz is in the clear, he’s the next big injury focus on the roster.

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Chiefs designate RB Jerick McKinnon to return from injured reserve

Chiefs designate RB Jerick McKinnon to return from injured reserve

The Kansas City Chiefs should have a key playmaker return to practice in Las Vegas as the team has opened the 21-day practice window for veteran running back Jerick McKinnon. The Chiefs’ regular third down running back has been out of action since injuring his groin during the team’s Week 15 victory over the New England Patriots on December 17th.

NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport reported the news on Saturday afternoon via social media. “A potential addition for the Super Bowl: Chiefs RB Jerick McKinnon has been designated to return off Injured Reserve.” posted Rapoport on ‘X..’ “His practice window is open.”

McKinnon was placed on Kansas City’s injured reserve list on Christmas Eve, less than 24 hours before their Week 16 matchup with the Las Vegas Raiders. Clyde Edwards-Helaire has stepped in admirably since as the team’s weekly third-down running back.

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McKinnon ended his 2023 regular season with 21 carries for 60 yards and a touchdown, with most of his production in the passing game consisting of 25 receptions for 192 yards and four touchdowns. He played in 12 games during the year due to the nagging injury. As his return to practice is positive news, it’s unclear whether or not one of Patrick Mahomes’ best red zone targets will be available for Super Bowl LVIII.

49ers practice update: WR Deebo Samuel in jersey, working on side field

Deebo Samuel isn’t practicing, but he’s not completely absent from the practice field per Matt Barrows.

49ers head coach Kyle Shanahan on Wednesday told reporters wide receiver Deebo Samuel would be a non-participant in practice, but he wasn’t completely absent from the field. Matt Barrows of the Athletic noted that Samuel was in a jersey and working on a side field during Wednesday’s session.

That’s not necessarily a sign that Samuel will play vs. Detroit, but it’s more positive than if he was completely inactive. Combining this with Shanahan saying that Samuel is feeling better after hurting his shoulder in Saturday’s divisional playoff game paints a far more positive picture than the one we saw Saturday of Samuel on the sideline in street clothes.

Thursday and Friday will give us better indicators of Samuel’s progress. For now though work on a side field is a plus for San Francisco and their star WR’s availability for the NFC championship.

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Sam LaPorta ‘over the hump’ with his knee injury

Lions coach Dan Campbell believes TE Sam LaPorta is ‘over the hump’ with his knee injury

Tight end phenom Sam LaPorta was questionable for the Lions game against the Los Angeles Rams with a knee injury. Wearing a heavy brace, LaPorta not only played his regular role but scored a touchdown.

The scary-looking injury suffered in Week 18 isn’t exactly healed, but the Lions and head coach Dan Campbell don’t seem too concerned about LaPorta’s status for Sunday’s divisional round matchup against the Buccaneers in Ford Field.

In his weekly radio spot on 97.1 the Ticket in Detroit, Campbell indicated that LaPorta came out of the game without aggravating the knee injury.

“I feel like we’re over the hump with him,” Campbell said of the All-Pro rookie. “There will always be a little soreness in there, but I think we got away unscathed there. He’s going to be feeling even better this week.”

That’s sweet music to the ears of the Lions fans as they get ready for the next round of the playoffs.

Packers unsure if WR Christian Watson will be available vs. Cowboys

The Packers admitted they knew Christian Watson was unlikely to play Sunday, and they aren’t sure if he’ll be back for the playoff opener against the Cowboys.

Green Bay Packers coach Matt LaFleur admitted he knew Christian Watson likely wasn’t going to play on Sunday as early as Friday, and he’s currently unsure if the Packers will get back Watson for this Sunday’s playoff showdown with the Dallas Cowboys.

Watson, who has now missed five straight games with a hamstring injury, practiced in a limited capacity on Wednesday and Thursday and appeared trending toward playing on Sunday vs. the Chicago Bears, but the Packers held him out of practice Friday and made him inactive for the season finale.

“He just wasn’t ready to play. I know it’s been extremely frustrating for him. I had a pretty good indication that it was probably trending that way, a little gamesmanship on my part. Sorry to lie to everybody,” LaFleur said post-game Sunday.

When asked Friday, LaFleur said the Packers were resting Watson to give him the best chance to play, even though the team likely knew he probably wasn’t going to play after two days of limited practice.

In terms of Sunday, LaFleur left the door open to Watson returning against the Cowboys but said it’s going to come down to how the player feels over the course of the week.

“It’s one of those things, I know it’s really frustrating. We’ll see where he’s at this week. I definitely wouldn’t rule him out, but I really don’t know. A lot of it comes down to the ‘feel’ of it for him. That’s certainly something we’re going to have to tackle this offseason.”

Watson injured his hamstring during the Packers’ win over the Kansas City Chiefs on Dec. 3. It marked the second hamstring injury for Watson this season, and he ended up missing eight total games due to hamstring issues (three to start the season, five to end the season) in 2023.

Without Watson on Sunday, Packers quarterback Jordan Love completed 27 of 32 passes for 316 yards and two touchdown passes. He connected 15 times on 18 attempts to Jayden Reed, Bo Melton and Dontayvion Wicks, creating 235 passing yards and both scores.

As a rookie in 2022, Watson caught three touchdown passes and ignited an incredible stretch of production during the Packers’ overtime win over the Cowboys at Lambeau Field.

Watson finished the 2023 regular season catching 28 passes for 422 yards and five touchdowns. He had touchdown catches in three straight games against the Los Angeles Chargers, Detroit Lions and Kansas City Chiefs before going down with an injury.

The Packers play the Cowboys at 3:30 p.m. CT on Sunday. Like a typical week, the team will provide the first injury report of the wildcard round on Wednesday, with a final injury report arriving Friday.

Chargers OL Jamaree Salyer questionable to return vs. Chiefs

Jamaree Salyer exited the game with an eye injury.

Even Week 18 has not provided a safe harbor for the Chargers.

Starting guard Jamaree Salyer exited the game late in the first quarter with what the team called an eye injury. It’s unclear when the injury occurred, but such a designation suggests that Salyer was likely poked in the eye during a blocking assignment.

Salyer has started every game for the Chargers this season at right guard. He was replaced by Austen Pleasants, who was elevated from the practice squad for the game.

Washington running back Dillon Johnson expected to play

Dillon Johnson, who had to be helped off the field on the final play against Texas, is expected to play against Michigan.

Washington running back Dillon Johnson, who suffered an uncomfortable injury on the final offensive play against Texas in the semifinals and needed to be helped off the field by trainers, is expected to play in Monday’s national championship game, head coach Kalen DeBoer announced on Saturday.

The Huskies running back has dealt with leg injuries for most of the season, either with his knee or foot. Johnson himself confirmed in a media availability that he won’t be 100% against Michigan, but he will be ready to play.

Johnson has been Washington’s best option on the ground by a wide margin this season. He’s rushed for 1,162 yards and 16 touchdowns on 222 carries this season, finishing in the top 25 in the country in rushing yards. He sent his biggest statement against USC with 256 yards and four touchdowns on the ground, gashing a leaky Trojans run defense.

No other Huskies running back surpassed 200 yards for the season, and the entire rest of the team managed just 583 yards on 150 carries.

C.J. Gardner-Johnson talks about his return and playing with a torn pec

Gardner-Johnson’s return window has begun, and he’s ready to make up for time lost to the torn pec he played through in Week 2

C.J. Gardner-Johnson is back at Detroit Lions practice a little over three months after tearing a pectoral muscle back in Week 2. His aggressive rehabilitation and recovery allowed the Lions to start the 21-day clock for his return from injured reserve.

His impending return reflects Gardner-Johnson’s toughness, both physical and mental. The physical part of the equation allowed him to finish playing in Week 2 against Seattle even after suffering the injury.

“How did I play through it?” Gardner-Johnson said via Kyle Meinke of MLive. “I’ll tell you how I played through it. I’m a dawg. I don’t think there’s no safety better than me right now. That’s why. I feel like I’m the best safety, so I feel like I have to go out there and prove it. That’s why I did it.”

Gardner-Johnson talked about the long days of work to get back,

“Wake up at 7, I was probably done around 9 o’clock at night.”

Being back with his teammates and helping the Lions pick up the team’s first division title in 30 yards has helped motivate him. The Lions can use his playoff experience, playmaking ability and cocksure presence now that he’s back in the building and ready to play once again.

Editor’s note: Gardner-Johnson has legally changed his name to Ceedy Duce, but the Lions and the NFL officially still list him with his old name. Until the team makes the change, we are obligated to refer to the player by the name officially listed.