NFL Injury Roundup – Week 16

With just two weeks left in the NFL regular season, the playoff pictures in both conferences are getting more and more clear. The Green Bay Packers are now in prime position to nab the top seed in the NFC, while the Kansas City Chiefs are nearly home-free on that front in the AFC. The Steelers, meanwhile, have dropped each of their last three games following their blazing 11-0 start, which has left many wondering whether Pittsburgh will even win their own division at this point.

Injuries will almost surely play a hand in things over the season’s last two weeks. That’s just the unfortunate reality of the league. How are certain injury situations going to be shaping the NFL’s betting outlook heading into Week 16?

Stephon Gilmore, CB, New England Patriots (Quad)

The New England Patriots were officially knocked out of playoff contention by losing to the Dolphins on Sunday afternoon. The Patriots were dealt another blow when reigning Defensive Player of the Year Stephon Gilmore appeared to injure his leg. He was immediately removed from the game and didn’t return. The Patriots announced afterward that Gilmore had been diagnosed with a torn quad, which will require season-ending surgery. Gilmore is slated to undergo his procedure on Tuesday.

Obviously, the injury has no bearing on the Patriots’ playoff odds since they have already been eliminated. Gilmore is expected to return at some point this offseason, where Ian Rapoport of the NFL Network says he should be healthy enough to participate in certain team activities.

Gilmore is set to enter the fifth and final year of his contract next season, so the timing of the injury could have been better for the 30-year-old.

The Pats will look to play spoiler next Monday night when they take on the Buffalo Bills, who just clinched the AFC East title for the first time since 1995 over the weekend. Without their star corner, New England has opened as a 6.5-point home underdog for Monday’s clash against Buffalo. The Bills picked up a three-point win over the Patriots in their only other meeting earlier this season.

Stefon Diggs, WR, Buffalo Bills (Foot)

The Buffalo Bills crushed the Broncos on Saturday afternoon to clinch the division title, but Buffalo didn’t come out of the game fully healthy. Buffalo’s leading receiver, Stefon Diggs, reportedly suffered a foot injury at some point during the game. The team hasn’t officially diagnosed Diggs with a specific injury, but head coach Sean McDermott does not seem overly concerned that the issue will affect him much moving forward.

Sean McDermott: Early reports on Stefon Diggs’ foot aren’t overly worrisome https://t.co/UfXNsmQdjU

— ProFootballTalk (@ProFootballTalk) December 21, 2020

So, as of now, we can expect Diggs to suit up and play in Monday night’s game in Foxborough. The 27-year-old has been everything the Bills could’ve hoped for and more since coming over from Minnesota in a blockbuster offseason trade. Diggs has caught 111 passes (147 targets) for 1,314 yards with five touchdowns in his first season with the Bills. The Maryland product has already set career-highs in receptions, targets, and receiving yards through just 14 games.

Diggs ranks third in the league behind DeAndre Hopkins and Travis Kelce in receiving yards, and he has helped transform Buffalo’s offense into one of the most prolific units in football. The Bills’ odds to make noise in the AFC playoffs have also steadily improved. Buffalo now owns the second-best odds (+425) to win the AFC behind Kansas City (-140). The Bills, who have never won the Super Bowl, are also listed at +900 to finally do so this season. Those are the fourth-best odds in the league behind the Chiefs (+170), Packers (+550), and Saints (+850).

Clyde Edwards-Helaire, RB, Kansas City Chiefs (Hip, Ankle)

The Kansas City Chiefs picked up a win in their highly-anticipated matchup in New Orleans on Sunday, but star rookie running back Clyde Edwards-Helaire picked up a couple of knicks along the way. Edwards-Helaire suffered injuries to both his hip and his ankle during the game, which means he is likely to miss each of the Chiefs’ next two regular-season games to close out the season.

Rapoport reported that the Chiefs are optimistic that the rookie will be able to return by the time Kansas City begins its quest to defend its Super Bowl title. Edwards-Helaire was bent backwards with his leg pinned underneath him as he hit the ground, but the Chiefs believe he was able to avoid a serious injury on the play.

With Edwards-Helaire likely sidelined, the Chiefs will likely turn to veteran Le’Veon Bell to fill the void in the backfield for the next two games. Bell hasn’t made much of an impact since arriving from the New York Jets earlier this season, but he hasn’t had much of a chance while sharing the backfield with Edwards-Helaire.

Bell has carried the ball 56 times for 224 yards with a pair of touchdowns through eight games with the Chiefs. He has also caught 12 passes for another 90 yards. He isn’t the game-changing playmaker he was during his Pro Bowl days with the Steelers anymore, but he will have the chance to contribute to the league’s highest-octane offense to finish the regular season.

Edwards-Helaire will likely finish his first NFL season with 803 rushing yards on 181 attempts and four touchdowns. The LSU product has also hauled in another 36 passes for 297 yards with another touchdown. The Chiefs will look to run their winning streak to 10 games on Sunday at home against the Falcons. Patrick Mahomes and co. are currently listed as 11-point favorites over Atlanta.

James Conner, RB, Pittsburgh Steelers (Quad)

The Pittsburgh Steelers were without their leading rusher again on Monday night, which may have contributed to their lackluster performance in a 27-17 upset loss to the lowly Bengals. Conner was ruled out shortly before kickoff with a quad injury, which puts his status into question ahead of next week’s game against the Colts.

The Steelers aren’t a particularly run-heavy offense to begin with, but they were unable to get anything going on the ground without Conner in Cincinnati on Monday night. The Steelers gained just 86 yards on 23 carries as a team, with Benny Snell leading the way with 84 of those yards. 29 of them came on one play as the Steelers averaged a paltry 3.7 yards per carry.

Pittsburgh RB James Conner, initially listed as questionable for tonight with a quad injury, is being downgraded to out against the Bengals, per source. Benny Snell likely will start in his place.

— Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) December 21, 2020

Conner has played just one game in the past month due to the quad injury and a positive COVID test. On the season, the former Pitt Panther has carried the ball 155 times for 663 yards and five touchdowns. Pittsburgh has averaged just 88.9 rushing yards per game this season, which makes them the second-worst rushing offense in the NFL ahead of only the Texans.

The Steelers also lost tight end Eric Ebron during Monday’s game. Ebron left the game with a back injury and didn’t return. Mike Tomlin said after the game that Ebron would undergo further evaluation.

Conner may be able to return to the field on Sunday when the Steelers play host to the Indianapolis Colts. The Steelers have actually opened as 1.5-point underdogs at home against an Indy team that comes in riding a three-game winning streak. This game will be the Steelers’ first Sunday game since their 27-3 win over the Jaguars way back on November 22.

Cam Akers, RB, Los Angeles Rams (Ankle)

The Los Angeles Rams suffered the biggest upset of the entire season on Sunday when they were beaten at home by the hapless Jets. New York came into the game at 0-13 on the year, but still managed to come away with a 23-20 win in LA.

While losing the game was brutal enough, the Rams also lost star rookie running back Cam Akers to an ankle injury. Akers suffered a high-ankle sprain during the loss, and head coach Sean McVay said afterward that Akers will be sidelined indefinitely.

Akers has assumed the role of lead back over the past few weeks after starting the season in a timeshare with Malcolm Brown and Darrell Henderson. Akers was injured in the second quarter before eventually returning to the game with his ankle taped. He finished the game with 15 carries for 63 yards. The former second-round pick has 124 carries for 591 yards and a couple of touchdowns on the season. Two weeks ago, Akers rushed for a career-high 171 yards in the Rams’ 24-3 win over the Patriots.

So, Los Angeles will be shorthanded offensively ahead of Sunday’s huge game with the Seattle Seahawks. The Rams fell out of first place in the NFC West thanks to their loss to the Jets, but they can jump right back ahead of Seattle with a win this Sunday at Lumen Field. The Seahawks got to 10-4 with a win over the Washington Football Team in Week 15, while the Rams’ loss dropped them to 9-5.

Henderson will likely take over as the Rams’ primary back in Sunday’s game, but Brown will likely have a role as his backup. The Rams have opened as two-point underdogs at Seattle. Los Angeles came away with an impressive 23-16 win over the Seahawks when these two teams met in Inglewood earlier this year.