Josh McCown is out. Andre Ellington is out. Alshon Jeffery is questionable. LeSean McCoy is probable. Mike Evans is probable.
Those are the injured skill position players who dominate the NFL Week 2 injury landscape.
But there are some key defensive players and offensive linemen whose status are worth something, too.
Giants middle linebacker Jon Beason – Don’t look for him to play against Atlanta. His knee still isn’t strong enough. This opens up the middle for Matt Ryan, an area Tony Romo exploited on the Cowboys’ game-winning drive against the Giants with Beason missing. Beason also is New York’s best run stopper.
Panthers middle linebacker Luke Kuechly – Kuechly is the best tackles guy in the NFL. He suffered a concussion last week and isn’t likely to get clearance to play against Houston. This has a negative cluster affect on Carolina’s run defense because tackle Star Lotulelei still is out with a foot injury. Unfortunately for the Texans they still don’t have Arian Foster to take advantage. The Panthers should dodge a bullet because the Texans lack a legitimate starting-caliber NFL runner without Foster.
Jets cornerback Antonio Cromartie – Don’t look for Cromartie to play against the Colts Monday night due to a knee injury. The Jets have a capable replacement corner in Buster Skrine, but Cromartie’s absence might mean less blitzing of Andrew Luck by Jets coach Todd Bowles.
Jacksonville strong safety Johnathan Cyprien – Cyprien is one of my favorite underrated players. He’s asked to do a lot because the Jaguars are so weak defensively. He’s considered doubtful versus Miami due to a calf injury.
Texans offensive left tackle Duane Brown – The Texans have three above average offensive players – Foster, Brown and DeAndre Hopkins. It appears they are going to be without two of them as Brown is likely to join Foster on the sideline. Brown has a painful thumb injury that needs rest. So new starting quarterback Ryan Mallet probably isn’t going to have his best offensive lineman.
Jaguars offensive left tackle Luke Joeckel – He didn’t practice all week because of an ankle injured suffered against Carolina. Joeckel’s replacement is Sam Young, who got buried when he replaced Joeckel.
Packers offensive right tackle Bryan Bulaga – He’s out with a knee injury. Bulaga gets some notice being a former first-round draft choice and you never want to be without a starting offensive lineman when playing Seattle. However, Green Bay has at least two offensive linemen better than Bulaga. This will be a key test for Don Barclay, Bulaga’s replacement. Barclay played well in 2013, but seems to have lost leg strength and drive this season after missing last year with a torn ACL.
