The Quad: For U.S.C., Injuries and Inconsistency

Ezra Shaw/Getty ImagesMatt Barkley of U.S.C. Thursday night against Cal.

SAN FRANCISCO – As showcase games go, the tussle between U.S.C. and Cal on Thursday night functioned more as a display of the middling Pac-12. With Stanford and Oregon legitimate top 10 teams and Arizona State lingering in the top 25, the rest of the Pac-12 has looked fairly lackluster this year.

U.S.C. trampled Cal, 30-9, but didn’t exactly look scintillating in doing it. Matt Barkley fluttered passes. Its run game looked stuck in neutral. Lane Kiffin even tried – and miserably failed – a fake field goal from a wacky formation that made everyone wonder if he would completely abandon kicking the ball all season.

“That’s no fun,” he said when asked why he didn’t kick a short field goal. “You’re on ESPN, you have to do something fun.”

It was a big win for U.S.C., which is 5-1 and should be ranked headed into its showdown next weekend with Notre Dame (4-2). But the biggest takeaway from the Trojan win was a flurry of injuries.

The U.S.C. starting tailback Marc Tyler dislocated his left shoulder. He carried the ball on the first play of the second half, got stuffed, and said that the U.S.C. training staff popped the shoulder back in on the field. He said he did not ask how long he’d be out and hesitated when asked if he would play at Notre Dame. He said X-rays on the shoulder were negative.

“Uhhhh, I don’t know,” he said about his status for Notre Dame. “This never really happened to me before. Right now, it’s just sore.”

U.S.C., once a stable of all-American linemen and tailbacks, cannot find any traction in its run game. The Trojans ran for 118 yards on 37 carries, an average of 3.2 yards per carry.

“It was tough out there,” said Tyler, who finished with 35 yards on 11 carries. “They blitzed a lot and brought a lot of pressure. The run game is inconsistent.”

U.S.C. receiver Marqise Lee said he sprained the acromioclavicular joint, or AC joint, in his right shoulder. He said he would be back for the Notre Dame game and practice Sunday.

“I’ll be all right,” Lee said. “I just need to ice it. No big deal.”

While Lee’s injury does not appear serious, the U.S.C. offense will need to be more in sync if the Trojans want to have a chance in South Bend. Barkley looked mediocre on Thursday, completing 19 of 35 passes for 195 yards and 2 touchdowns.

“All right,” Barkley said of his performance. “Just all right. Not good enough to win big games.”

While U.S.C. is pleased to be 5-1 for the first time in Kiffin’s tenure, there’s a big game looming. And the Trojans will need to be better.

U.S.C. also sustained two key defensive injuries. The starting cornerback Anthony Brown broke an ankle, according to multiple reports. And the reserve safety Demetrius Wright had a lower leg contusion. He left on crutches and said he should be fine to play against Notre Dame.

Kiffin declined to comment on the spate of injuries, but it is clear that an inconsistent Trojans team will be heading into its game against Notre Dame short-handed.

And in another showcase game, the Pac-12’s reputation could be limping along with U.S.C.

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Checking the injuries that matter most

Carolina defensive end Charles Johnson (hip) is probable and participated fully in practice. Johnson had been added to the injury report Thursday. Right tackle Jeff Otah (back) is listed as questionable and participated in practice on a limited basis. Linebacker Omar Gaither (knee) is out for Sunday.

Atlanta has declared receiver Julio Jones (hamstring) and cornerback Chris Owens (concussion) out for Sunday’s game with Carolina. Defensive end John Abraham (groin), center Todd McClure (knee), guard Garrett Reynolds (ankle), and safety James Sanders (hamstring) are all listed as questionable. Abraham, McClure and Reynolds each participated in Friday’s practice on a limited basis.

The New Orleans Saints declared right tackle Zach Strief (knee), linebacker Will Herring (hamstring) and tight end David Thomas (concussion) out for Sunday’s game with Tampa Bay. Receiver Devery Henderson (calf) is probable.

The Buccaneers declared defensive tackle Gerald McCoy (ankle), tight end Luke Stocker (knee) and receiver Sammie Stroughter (foot) out for Sunday. Running back LeGarrette Blount (knee) is listed as doubtful and linebacker Mason Foster (knee) is questionable. Foster was able to participate in practice fully Friday.

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Injuries Force Another Shakeup on Eagles Line

Starting left tackle Jason Peters is out indefinitely with a hamstring injury he suffered in a loss to the 49ers two weeks ago, and his replacement, 6-foot-9 King Dunlap, missed a second consecutive day of practice Friday because of back spasms.

The two injuries have left the Eagles with only two healthy offensive tackles — Todd Herremans, the usual right tackle, and Winston Justice, who missed all of training camp because of offseason knee surgery and hasn't played all year.

Coach Andy Reid said after practice Friday that if Dunlap's back spasms don't abate by Sunday, Herremans will start against the Redskins at left tackle — where he hasn't played since 2005 — and Justice will make his first start since undergoing major offseason knee surgery.

"We don't," Herremans said, "have too many other options right now."

Reid said Dunlap injured his back on the final play of practice Wednesday. He's now questionable.

"We were doing a two-minute drill, non-contact," Reid said, "and he came out of his stance and it locked up on him."

Dunlap attended part of Friday's practice in the team's indoor bubble but did not participate.

Reid said if Dunlap's back spasms go away, he'll be fine to play, despite missing the last two days of practice.

"King's a smart kid, so I don't think that would necessarily be a problem," he said. "I want to make sure he feels all right before we do that, but I think he would be OK."

Herremans has four career starts at left tackle, all during 2006, his rookie year. He spent the last four years at left guard before moving to right tackle just before this year's opener.

"I know the technique, I know the steps I'm supposed to take and everything, it's just getting my body used to being on that side," Herremans said. "I got used to being over on the right again and now getting switched up. But the main thing is we want to get our five best guys out there, whatever arrangement we have, and go out there and win the game."

The Eagles (1-4) face the Redskins (3-1) Sunday at FedEx Field. No team has opened a season 1-5 and reached the playoffs since the 1975 Bengals.

Justice missed all of training camp and most of the preseason while rehabbing his knee. He started practicing on Sept. 5 but hasn't played on offense since last year's playoff game against the Packers.

"It seems like every week he's getting a little bit better and feeling more comfortable," Reid said. "He deserves the opportunity to play if that presents itself."

Justice said he's put in extra time over the past few weeks with new offensive line coach Howard Mudd, whose scheme is dramatically different than what Justice played in under former offensive line coach Juan Castillo, now the team's defensive coordinator.

"It's always a little bit uncomfortable at first to try something new," he said. "But I think I feel comfortable."

Justice has 32 career starts, 31 of them at right tackle and one at left tackle.

"He's been out there getting scout team reps for a couple weeks now, so I think he's getting more and more comfortable," Herremans said. "Running with the first team over there at right tackle (is) probably a good confidence builder for him. It looks like he's got his punch and everything still. He looks comfortable."

Reid said if Dunlap is unable to play, and either Herremans or Justice get hurt during the game, left guard Evan Mathis would move to right tackle, and Jamaal Jackson would likely move in at left guard.

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Coughlin weighs in on Giants’ suspicious injuries

Published: September 20th, 2011 | Tags: Tom Coughlin, Deon Grant, Jacquian Williams, New York Giants

Giants coach Tom Coughlin met with reporters Tuesday to unpack the previous night’s 28-13 victory over the Rams. And he had some questions to answer.

Coughlin shared his perspective on first-quarter injuries to safety Deon Grant and LB Jacquian Williams that — because of how quickly the players bounced back — raised speculation New York was buying time against St. Louis’ no-huddle attack.

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“Well, from my standpoint on the sideline, I thought (Grant) was cramped,” Coughlin said. “They were in a no-huddle situation, a hurry-up deal. I just thought he cramped at that time or definitely had something that was bothersome to him.”

Said Coughlin: “When I looked out on the field, all I saw was the injured player.”

Coughlin then was asked if employing faking injuries to slow the action could be categorized as smart football.

“That’s not very smart,” he said. “That’s a penalty. … It did force a rule change, too. The only thing I would comment on is at that point in time, the only thing I noticed was a player down.”

Did we expect the veteran coach to say something different?

– Marc Sessler

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Faking injuries? Nothing new around these parts

Giants coach Tom Coughlin brushed off suggestions that his players faked injuries Monday night to slow down the Rams’ no-huddle attack. Regardless if the Giants are guilty or innocent, it wouldn’t be a revolution. This has been happening (at least it has been accused of happening) for years.

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A few of the more memorable examples:

1988 AFC Divisional Playoff: Seahawks at Bengals

This one caused a firestorm. Seahawks coach Chuck Knox admitted that his nose tackle, Joe Nash, had faked injuries four times (hugely subtle) in order to stop the clock against the Bengals’ no-huddle offense. Cincinnati won 21-13 on its way to losing Super Bowl XXIII to the San Francisco 49ers.

1995: Bills at Browns

After the Bills beat the Browns 22-19 in a Monday night game in Week 5, coach Marv Levy accused Cleveland of faking injuries to slow down Buffalo’s no-huddle offense. Browns coach Bill Belichick wasn’t shy in taking exception to that hypothesis.

“I think that’s a bunch of garbage,” Belichick said. “It’s hard for me to have respect for Levy for saying that. It’s demeaning. We had guys out there playing as hard as they could play, with as much courage as they could show. For this guy to come back and make a ridiculous comment like that, I see where he had some players hurt in the game. If Levy thinks he’s the only coach that’s ever had a guy hurt, then I think he ought to take a look around the league.”

Belichick — just a sliver crankier back then — went on: “Here’s a guy offensively who came in and tried to run the wing-T offense in Kansas City. That was brilliant. And the best thing he did was turn the offense over to Jim Kelly in the second half of the Carolina game and against us. There’s a guy, Jim Kelly, who can run an offense and move an offense. Unfortunately, he (Levy) didn’t call more plays against us, like he did against Carolina. I would much rather go against him than Jim Kelly. I think it’s a disgrace for him to make comments like that.”

Fourteen seasons later, the Browns found themselves in another mess:

2009: Browns at Lions

Belichick disciple/nemesis Eric Mangini, at the helm of the Browns, accused the Lions of faking injuries to slow down Cleveland’s no-huddle offense during a 38-37 loss at Ford Field. Like you, we’re trying to imagine a scenario in which the 2009 Browns — ranking 32nd in total yards — could have moved slower. We’ll keep working on that.

– Marc Sessler

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NC State D trying to overcome injuries

Last year was the healthiest NC State has been during Tom O’Brien’s tenure, and it showed in the final results, as the Wolfpack finished with nine wins and ranked in the Associated Press Top 25.

This year? It seems like you could field an entire starting lineup with the players who are sidelined, but the defense has been hit the hardest. It could be a factor once again on Thursday night as the Pack prepares to travel to Cincinnati. The Bearcats have the No. 4 scoring offense in the country with 51.33 points per game, but many of the numbers have come against inferior opponents. Still, NC State’s depleted defense will be tested.

[+] Enlarge Jeremy Brevard/US PRESSWIRE"It's been a tough season to play defense," said NC State coach Tom O'Brien, who has seen several injuries on that side of the ball.NC State has opened the past two games without two starting defensive linemen and finished the South Alabama game with four starters on the bench. Senior captain J.R. Sweezy suffered a broken foot in preseason practice and is still in a walking boot. Redshirt freshman Thomas Teal took Sweezy’s place, but suffered the exact same injury in the first game and has joined the walking boot club.

Prior to facing Wake Forest, starting end Jeff Rieskamp was sidelined with a shoulder injury. The Cincinnati native has missed the last two games and his status is still unknown for Thursday night. Redshirt freshman Art Norman has been starting in his place, but he left the South Alabama game with an injury and did not return.

NC State’s defense took another big hit in Saturday’s game when weakside linebacker Terrell Manning injured his knee in the first half and did not return. He was operated on earlier this week.

“It’s been a tough season to play defense,” O’Brien said. “We lost a corner to start the year, we lost our captain and best defensive lineman, we lost the next-best defensive lineman, we lost the back-up middle linebacker, lost a corner, lost a linebacker.

“Dwayne Maddox has some experience, he’s been around and is going to have to step up and make some plays right now. Certainly we’re down seven guys off the top 15 that we had going in the first of August. There are 15 left from the top 22. It’s been a difficult year to play defense around here.”

O’Brien said the staff would try to get Rieskamp ready to face his hometown team, but even if he is cleared to play, he won’t have had much practice time.

“We’re trying to get him ready for Cincinnati, but if that doesn’t work then we’ll try for Georgia Tech,” O’Brien said. “It’s week-to-week trying to get guys back and get them healthy.”

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Did the Giants fake injuries in win over Rams?

Take a look at the video above from Monday night’s Giants-Rams tilt, which went to New York 28-16.

With just under four minutes left in the first quarter, and the Rams no-huddle offense marching toward pay dirt, a pair of New York defenders crumpled to the MetLife Stadium ground like a couple of teens at a Bieber concert.

We can’t speculate on the extent of the injuries suffered by S Deon Grant and LB Jacquian Williams. But they certainly healed in a hurry in what resembles the most recent example of a common delay tactic used by NFL defenses.

“Miraculously, he (Grant) recovered quickly,” ESPN’s Mike Tirico said after watching the replay.

Analyst Jon Gruden was a bit more specific in his interpretation: “I hate to say that he’s (Grant’s) not really hurt, but that’s a tactic that defenses have used in the past against no-huddle offenses to try to slow it down and stop the clock.”

The drive ended with St. Louis’ Josh Brown booting a 25-yard field goal.

In a chat on FOXSports.com on Monday, former VP of NFL Officiating and current FOX Sports NFL rules analyst Mike Pereira responded to a question about the suspect injuries.

“It is allowed because it is not against the rules,” he wrote. “It will end up getting discussed in the offseason. This has been going on for a long time and needs to be addressed. It is totally unethical.”

UPDATE: Asked for comment, NFL spokesman Greg Aiello pointed to page 19 of the NFL rulebook (Rule 4/Game Timing): “The Competition Committee deprecates feigning injuries, with subsequent withdrawal, to obtain a timeout without penalty. Coaches are urged to cooperate in discouraging this practice.” Of course, if a player or club admits to it, the action would be subject to discipline.

– Marc Sessler

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