Glazer: Patriots WR Amendola Tore His Adductor
While it was initially thought that Danny Amendola was dealing with a bad groin pull that was further aggravated due to his gutsy performance in week one against the Bills, it appears that the veteran may be in worse shape that had initially been thought.
It appears that Danny Amendola is worse off than initially had been thought. (USA TODAY Images) |
Reports after the game seemed to have him out anywhere from 2-6 weeks, which seemed a little extreme for such an injury, but we found out on Sunday why. Ben Volin caught a report on Fox's pregame show from Fox Sports' Jay Glazer who revealed Amendola tore his adductors, which connects the hips to his legs and potentially also has a sports hernia. Should the latter be the case it could keep Amendola out a minimum of 3-4 weeks.
That's tough news for a player who was hoping to shed the "injury prone" title that he's been saddled with during recent years. The Patriots signed the former Rams receiver in the hopes of having him replace Wes Welker, who left for Denver via free agency this offseason. Welker had been a reliable player in New England's offense in recent years and had been the only steady piece of Tom Brady's arsenal. They needed a similar performance from Amendola this season as they acclimated their rookies to the offense, but the news of his injury may now prompt them to start looking for another veteran to bring in until they're confident that Amendola can return at full strength later in the season.
Until then even more pressure will fall onto Julian Edelman, who so far has been the biggest bright spot in this offense. He led all receivers last week with 18 targets and 13 receptions, and has 20 catches through two games, as well as seven catches on seven targets from Brady on third down, including four first downs and two touchdowns so far this season.
One would have to assume now that role will become a little larger and we'll have to see if he can continue to play at the level we've seen through two games until Amendola can get back into the line-up.