Houston quarterback Matt Leinart is out for the season with a broken left collarbone, and Cleveland linebacker Scott Fujita also could be done with a broken right hand.
Pittsburgh safety Troy Polamalu, last season’s NFL Defensive Player of the Year, has a suspected concussion and the team did not offer a prognosis.
The Texans lost their second quarterback in as many games; Matt Schaub broke his right foot against Tampa Bay on Nov. 13. Leinart will have surgery next week after breaking his collarbone in a win over Jacksonville.
“I’ve been a little bit part coach, part counselor here the last couple of weeks,” coach Gary Kubiak said Monday. “I’ve got Schauby in my office all day last Monday and today I’ve got Lefty (Leinart) up there. It’s just difficult. It’s difficult for both of them.
“(Leinart) had been to the top of this league from the standpoint of opportunity, draft status, all that stuff. He had been there. He had been knocked down in this league. He had been told no. He was making his way back and you’ve got to respect that as a person and a player.”
Fujita, a team leader in Cleveland, played in just nine games last season because of a left knee injury. Browns coach Pat Shurmur says Fujita will miss “a significant amount of time” and it’s possible the club will place the 32-year-old on injured reserve.
“It’s a big loss for us,” fellow LB D’Qwell Jackson said. “You can’t replace him. He makes a ton of plays. He helps me out.”
Polamalu sat out almost the entire win at Kansas City following a low hit on 6-foot-6, 290-pound Chiefs tackle Steve Maneri. Coach Mike Tomlin said the team held out Polamalu as a precaution; it’s the second time this season Polamalu left a game early following a blow to the head.
“I don’t know at this juncture if it was a concussion, I want to be clear,” Tomlin said.
Rams safety Darian Stewart was sent home Monday suffering from concussion-like symptoms, headache and dizziness. Quarterback Sam Bradford aggravated his high left ankle sprain and was sore, but coach Steve Spagnuolo was hopeful Bradford would practice Wednesday.
Redskins FB Darrel Young has a concussion and will go through tests the next couple of days. DE Stephen Bowen has a ligament tear in his left knee, but the team is hopeful he can play Sunday against the Jets.
Titans cornerback Tommie Campbell sprained his left shoulder, but didn’t dislocate the joint. Tight end Jared Cook said he passed all concussion tests after taking a hard hit against Tampa Bay. He said he wanted to return to the game, but team trainers wouldn’t let him as a precaution.
Vikings long-snapper Cullen Loeffler will miss two to six weeks with a back injury. Safety Tyrell Johnson has a “significant” right hamstring injury and receiver Michael Jenkins also is having a knee injury examined. The Vikings did not say which knee Jenkins injured.
Jets defensive lineman Mike DeVito will likely not play against the Redskins after injuring his left knee against Buffalo.
“Looks like he’s got a little bit of a knee, an MCL thing,” coach Rex Ryan said. “I don’t think Mike is going to play this week.”
DeVito missed two games earlier this season with a similar injury to his right knee.
Torell Troup’s nagging back troubles aren’t getting any better, putting him in jeopardy of becoming the latest Bills player to go on injured reserve. Coach Chan Gailey said Troup’s back locked up and prevented him from playing in a 28-24 loss at the Jets. Gailey said test results of Troup’s back were “not good.”
Cornerback Leodis McKelvin has a chance to play this weekend after hurting his ribs against the Jets.
Seattle placed backup linebacker and special teams standout David Vobora on injured reserve with an apparent shoulder injury. Vobora was seen in the locker room after Sunday’s loss to Washington with a wrap on his left shoulder, but the team did not specify Vobora’s injury.