Things may be going from bad to worse for the Detroit Lions. According to ESPN’s Michael Rothstein (with information from Insider Dan Graziano), Detroit Lions franchise quarterback Matthew Stafford might miss some time:
Lions quarterback Matthew Stafford suffered a hamstring injury and a sprained ankle in Detroit's 27-24 loss to Carolina…and Stafford's week of practice will determine whether he plays Sunday against New Orleans.
Stafford was noticeably limping around late in Sunday’s 27-24 loss to Carolina after getting both his thigh and ankle taped up by the training staff on the sideline. Stafford also had a bloodied hand in that game. The injuries piled up because Stafford has been sacked 12 times in the last two games.
Stafford was very tight-lipped about his injury while talking to the press after the game:
#Lions LIVE Postgame 10.8.17: Matthew Stafford pic.twitter.com/f2dXmMcrKZ
— Bally Sports Detroit (@BallySportsDET) October 8, 2017
Deflector shields to full power!
It is a trick Stafford learned from his Head Coach Jim “check the report” Caldwell. Here is the transcript from Caldwell's press conference on Monday:
- On any update on how QB Matthew Stafford is feeling today: “Yeah, I think like most of the guys, they’re pretty sore after the game. But the rest of it, you’ll have to just wait for the injury report on it on Wednesday.”
- On if there is any concern that Stafford’s health might linger into practice this week: “You’ll have to wait and see the practice report.”
- On how he weighs playing Stafford with less mobility or sitting him for a week with the Bye Week coming up: “Totally hypothetical situation which generally as you well know, I’m not going to answer.”
- On if Stafford got X-Rays and if they were negative: “Check the report. If the report says that, you can get your answer from there.”
- On if the report doesn’t answer the question: “If it doesn’t say that, you’re out of luck.”
Well, there you have it. If Stafford is forced to sit out, the questions to Caldwell will get a lot tougher. Why did he leave his franchise QB in the Panthers game when he was obviously hurt? Stafford may be in better shape today if he had watched the fourth quarter from the sidelines.
Stafford was slightly more forthcoming about the possibility of missing Sunday’s when he did his weekly appearance with Mitch Albom on Monday. When asked when a decision will be made on whether or not he will play against the Saints, Stafford said:
I'm not sure, honestly.
Yikes! That is not what Lions fans want to hear.
Stafford has not missed a start since before the 2011 season. His backup, Jake Rudock, has zero career starts as a pro. As a matter of fact, he has not taken a snap in a regular season game. Rudock is the only other quarterback on the Lions roster, so keep an eye on the waiver wire to see if Detroit inks another backup. That would be a huge indication of Stafford’s status.
