Jake Roth-US Presswire
Ryan Mathews was injured in the first preseason game for the San Diego Chargers on August 9, 2012. Mathews broke his clavicle on his first rushing attempt in that game.
When the injury happened, Mathews was expected to miss 4-6 weeks, but aimed for a return at the earliest which was the regular season opener against the Oakland Raiders.
Mathews missed this game as well as the regular season home opener. ESPN physical therapist Stephania Bell correctly predicted that Mathews would be out closer to six weeks instead of the four week mark which he targeted.
Mathews suffered this injury six weeks ago and should be ready to play in Sunday’s home game against the Atlanta Falcons. Mathews was cleared for contact last week, but had limited opportunities in practice, so he sat out Sunday’s win against the Tennessee Titans.
San Diego head coach Norv Turner said that he believes Mathews will practice today with the team. If Mathews is ready to go on Sunday, he will be a big addition to a team who averaged 30 points per game in two wins.
The 2012 NFL season is only two weeks old, so it is difficult to determine how good or how bad some teams are in certain categories.
Atlanta gave up 4.5 yards per rushing attempt through two games. There are only 10 teams who gave up more yards per attempt than the Falcons. This could be the right team for Mathews to come back against because Atlanta is struggling against the run.
If Mathews plays, I expect him to receive the majority of San Diego’s rushing attempts on Sunday.
