When New York Giants running back Saquon Barkley went down with an ankle injury on Sunday, it looked bad. When his ankle then swelled up like a balloon a few seconds later, it looked much worse.
The primary concern was that Barkley had suffered a broken ankle. The secondary concern was that if he avoided a fracture, he suffered a high ankle sprain.
As it turns out, Barkley may have avoided the worst-case scenario and suffered neither a break nor a high ankle sprain.
NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport reports that although Barkley will undergo additional testing on Monday, early word is that he merely suffered a low ankle sprain.
#Giants star RB Saquon Barkley is believed to have suffered a low-ankle sprain, sources say, an injury that likely knocks him out next week. He’ll have more tests, but he’s best characterized as week-to-week. A fast healer, Barkley will work to miss only one week.
— Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet) October 11, 2021
“I care about the welfare and health of the player, so we’ll do the best thing by him and if he’s ready to go out there and play, he’ll go out there and play. If there’s something we have to make sure we have to get him back to health in the course of time, we’ll do that for him as well,” head coach Joe Judge said after the game.
For now, Barkley is considered week-to-week but that is obviously subject to change. The same can likely be said for quarterback Daniel Jones (concussion), wide receiver Kenny Golladay (knee) and several others.
Although each of these players appear to have avoided season-ending injuries, do not expect them to play in Week 6 against the Los Angeles Rams.
