You’ll have to forgive me if this post seems suspiciously similar to the one I wrote earlier today about Andre Smith, but I’m just working with what they’re giving me here. If a few players are going to suffer serious muscle or tendon tears, then who am I to not point out the severity of these injuries? Aside from the Andre Smith triceps injury I just mentioned, it sounds like we’re now looking at an equally-serious pectoral tear for Texans QB Ryan Mallett. Here’s the word from Ian Rapoport:
#Texans QB Ryan Mallett played thru a potentially torn pectoral muscle today, per source. The injury occurred pregame, may end his season
— Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet) November 24, 2014
First of all, any player at any any position would be in serious danger of landing on the injured reserve list with a pectoral injury. But for this to happen to a QB, and on the throwing side no less… yikes. As The Internets is saying today, it’s Fitzmagic time.
In my injury database, I have records of 13 players with pectoral tears. Can you guess how many landed on IR? No, not all 13. But close. 11 of them landed on IR, and the only exceptions were the two players who suffered this injury in Week 17 (Brian Orakpo) or the Pro Bowl (Haloti Ngata). Those are some long odds, my friends. As for the best-case-scenario that Mallett should be hoping for, that would be that the scans reveal that his injury is simply a pectoral strain. In 2011, QB Tavaris Jackson suffered what was reported as a, “high-grade pectoral strain,” on his throwing side. Jackson missed only two weeks, though he played badly and with with pain well after his return. So that’s not really so rosy, is it? Sorry Mallett. But if you want to look on the bright side, at least there aren’t any foreign language words for, “goodbye,” that start with the letter “M”, so I was totally unable to write a snide headline. This isn’t over, Mallett.
