Two weeks of the NFL season are in the books, and there are some teams which are facing some major injury concerns already.
DOWNED OFFENSE IN DALLAS
Nine months ago, Tony Romo was handing the ball off to DeMarco Murray and throwing it to Dez Bryant and Jason Witten. Now, all four of them are either on the shelf or gone.
Bryant was already ruled out for at least a month and a half with a broken foot after Week 1, and now, Romo has a broken collarbone for the second time in the last few seasons. Witten is all dinged up too, and though none of his injuries individually are that bad, two sprained knees and an ankle problem will probably see him out against Atlanta as well.
A game which the Cowboys probably would have been favored in by a full touchdown a few weeks ago is now all of a sudden Atlanta -1.5 with all of the problems going on in the Lone Star State.
MORE QUARTERBACK QUANDARIES
Romo wasn't the only quarterback who went down last Sunday by any stretch of the imagination.
The Bears know they are going to be without Jay Cutler for at least a game or two thanks to a hamstring injury he suffered while chasing after an interception he threw. How appropriate! Some Chicago fans will tell you that the Bears are better off with Jimmy Clausen running the show, but after the way Arizona mauled Chicago after Cutler got hurt, we aren't so sure that's going to be the case. Still, John Fox has no other choice at this point but to go with the Notre Dame product on Sunday. To make matters worse for the Bears, Alshon Jeffrey is questionable for Week 3 as well after he didn't play in Week 2 with a hamstring problem.
Drew Brees says that he is going to play on Sunday through a bruised shoulder injury, but we have our doubts and our concerns either way. Clearly, Brees was abused last week in the pocket by the Tampa Bay defensive line, one which isn't exactly known for being the most ferocious in football. If he can't get torque on his throws, Brees is totally useless, as pretty much was the case for the whole second half against the Bucs last week.
Finally, Matt Stafford is a question mark as well for the Lions. Again, Stafford says that he is playing on Sunday Night Football against the Broncos, but he has been beaten to a pulp in the pocket these first two games of the year. He's got chest and rib injuries he's dealing with, so at minimum, he'll be wearing a flak jacket on Sunday, which could play a role in how much oomph he can get on his passes.
OTHER NOTABLE WEEK 3 INJURIES
-Andre Ellington is out for another game for the Cardinals with a knee injury.
-Tevin Coleman broke a rib last week and is out for at least two weeks, leaving Devonta Freeman alone in the Atlanta backfield.
-Breshad Perriman figures to sit another week for the Ravens, who badly need a receiver to be able to stretch the field in their offense.
-Luke Kuechly expects to return to the field for the Panthers in Week 3, but as of Wednesday, he still has not passed concussion protocol and has to be cleared first before he gets back on the field.
-Josh McCown has been cleared to play again for the Browns, though no announcement has been made yet whether it will be he or Johnny Manziel starting in Week 3.
-Eddie Lacy is questionable for Monday's game against Atlanta with an ankle problem which cost him most of last week's game. At best, he'll be in a timeshare with James Starks if he can play.
-Arian Foster is likely to sit out one more week for the Texans as he recovers from a groin injury in the offseason.
-The Colts have big time problems at corner. D'Joun Smith is already on IR, as is Tevin Mitchel. To make matters worse, Greg Toler, Darius Butler and Vontae Davis are all questionable with various injuries as well for this week.
-Eric Decker is out for at least a week, and perhaps for quite a long time with a knee injury he suffered on Monday in Indianapolis.
-DeMarco Murray hurt his hamstring in practice on Wednesday and is questionable for Sunday's game against the Jets. The Eagles already know they are going to be without Kiko Alonso in this game with a knee injury.
-Carlos Hyde was cleared from a concussion he suffered last weekend and is probable to play on Sunday. His role is important, knowing that Reggie Bush is still out with a calf injury in San Fran.
-Kam Chancellor has ended his holdout and will be back in the lineup for the Seahawks this weekend.
-Todd Gurley is questionable to make his NFL debut but figures to be in the lineup soon for the Rams.
The NFL lines for every Week 3 game were first released by BookMaker. Now you can wager in-game while the action unfolds with BookMaker's live betting option.
Need to fund your account before the big game but don’t have your computer? No problem! BookMaker Sportsbook now offers a mobile betting cashier so you can deposit money directly from your smartphone. Don’t miss out on getting paid because you couldn’t bet. Click here and deposit at BookMaker now!
