Matthew Stafford’s Season Could Be Over

Added on Nov 10, 2010 by Scott in

NFL

Just two weeks after returning to the Lions starting lineup, quarterback Matthew Stafford could be done for the season after suffering a second separation to his throwing shoulder. An MRI was conducted on Monday, but the results were not made public as of this writing. Stafford is expected to get a second opinion from famed orthopedist Dr. James Andrews, which will ultimately determine if the second-year signal caller is shut down for the remainder of 2010.

When healthy, Stafford has displayed signs of being the franchise quarterback the Lions have long sought. However, his inability to avoid injuries is severely hampering his development, and the longterm prospects of an organization looking to extract itself from the morass of failures and missteps that have plagued them for over a decade.

Stafford is obviously disappointed by this latest setback:

“I’ve got to talk some more with these doctors and kind of figure out what they’re thinking,” Stafford told a Detroit radio program Monday night. “It’s kind of frustrating to be coming back and, two games later, be knocked out again. We’ll take it day by day and figure out what the plan is.”

Lions head coach Jim Schwartz wouldn’t reveal any further details about the injury on Tuesday, which doesn’t bode well for those expecting good news. Normally a coach will give a timetable for return after an MRI. Schwartz’s silence likely points toward a worst case scenario outcome.

As for Stafford, this makes three shoulder separations in less than two years. He’s quickly gaining a reputation for being fragile, which in the rough and tumble world of professional football is about as bad as it gets, especially for a quarterback earning $78 million, $41 million of which is guaranteed.

Source: NFL.com