If you thought that Week 2 of the 2020 NFL season was already a brutal time for injuries (and it certainly was)… well, we’ve got another one for you. And this is not at all good.
Per ESPN’s Adam Schefter, the Los Angeles Chargers’ team doctor was trying to administer a pain-killing shot to quarterback Tyrod Taylor before the team’s game against the Chiefs… and accidentally punctured one of Taylor’s lungs. Taylor was trying to play despite cracked ribs, but that’s why the Chargers had to put rookie Justin Herbert out there against the defending Super Bowl champs with no notice whatsoever.
Taylor suffered the injury in the Chargers’ Week 1 win over the Bengals, but per Schefter, he didn’t have an MRI until later in the week. Instead of playing through the injury, Taylor had to be hospitalized for some obvious breathing issues.
Doctors have now told Taylor that he will be out “indefinitely,” which means you won’t likely see him against the Panthers this Sunday.
This also explains why Chargers head coach Anthony Lynn was so adamant about the fact that Taylor was still his starting quarterback, despite the fact that Herbert held up pretty well against the Chiefs — were Taylor to lose his starting role due to his own team’s medical malfeasance, that could be an actionable event.
Per Bleacher Report’s Kalyn Kahler:
Asked Chargers HC Anthony Lynn to further explain sticking with Tyrod Taylor as starter, if he's 100% healthy. Here's his full answer: "There is a lot we didn’t get done with Justin on the field yesterday. He is a backup for a reason, he is a rookie…" pic.twitter.com/iulRIODObU
— Kalyn Kahler (@kalynkahler) September 21, 2020
“Don’t get me wrong, I thought what Justin did, I thought he came in and gave us a chance to win. But there is a lot you don’t know and there is a lot we didn’t get done with Justin on the field yesterday. He is a backup for a reason. He is a rookie and there is a lot he needs to learn about this game. Tyrod is a veteran guy, I have had him before. I know what to expect from him and what he is going to get done. If Tyrod can’t go and we have to go with Justin, I am perfectly content with that. I know we can win with either quarterback, but the veteran quarterback right now gives us the best chance to win. And it’s not like we won the damn game yesterday. We lost, last time I checked.”
Lynn is a standup guy, and what else is he going to say back before this story came out?
