Two NFC playoff contenders for 2014 could be without contributing players for an extended period of time. Arizona Cardinals running back Andre Ellington suffered a foot injury in practice on Thursday and Packers offensive tackle Bryan Bulaga injured his knee during last night's game in Seattle.
Ellington missed five games in 2010 at Clemson with a foot injury and had minor ankle surgery in 2012. His durability was a question prior to the 2013 NFL Draft, where he was selected in the sixth round by the Arizona Cardinals. The 25-year-old broke out onto the scene last year for Arizona, carrying the ball 118 times for 652 yards (5.5 ypc) behind Rashard Mendenhall. Ellington became the starter when Mendenhall retired in the offseason, but he faces a bit of a setback now.
It was reported that the foot injury he suffered in Thursday's practice is worse than initially thought and now he may miss an "extended period of time," according to reports. Fox Sports' Mike Jurecki tweeted Friday morning that Ellington underwent an MRI and could be facing a significant absence. The results of the MRI have yet to be released as the Cardinals approach their Monday Night Football matchup against the San Diego Chargers. If Ellington is unavailable, Jonathan Dwyer will start in his place.
While the Cardinals wait to begin their season on Monday, the Green Bay Packers began theirs on Thursday night in Seattle - and it didn't go too well. On top of suffering a 36-16 loss to the Seahawks, the Packers received news today that offensive tackle Bryan Bulaga has a sprained MCL in his left knee, but "shouldn't miss much time," according to ESPN NFL Insider Adam Schefter, citing an unnamed source. Nonetheless, it's not great news for the Packers, who performed poorly on both sides of the ball last night.
Bulaga also missed all of 2013 with a torn ACL in the same knee, so it's not too comforting that he's sustaining such injuries this early in his career. The former first-round pick was playing in his first game last night since November of 2012, but missed the entire second half after going into the locker room for examination. Green Bay has nine days until their Week 2 matchup against the New York Jets, and if Bulaga in unable to play, Derek Sherrod will likely start in his place.
Check out the latest NFL injury news on ESPN's Injury Wire.
