It was not all rainbows and butterflies for the Falcons on Sunday in a 31-24 win over the Panthers. The injury bug struck again with several key starters leaving the game and never returning. Dan Quinn has revealed little to none about the severity of the injuries. Nonetheless, he had a similar tone regarding Keanu Neal and Deion Jones, who are now both on IR.
One of the most concerning losses came along the offensive line when Andy Levitre left with an elbow injury. Wes Schweitzer, a starter from last year, replaced Levitre and the offense did not miss a beat. The Falcons believe in Schweitzer as a reliable stand-in, but they took a noticeable step back when Levitre was not on the field at the end of last season.
The injury to really keep your eye on is that of Takk McKinley. The Falcons early-season sack leader suffered a groin injury in Sunday’s win.
Quinn said Takk has a groin injury, update coming Wednesday
— Kelsey Conway (@FalconsKelsey) September 17, 2018
Even though there has yet to be an official statement from the team, there is reason to believe McKinley will not be on the field against the Saints next week and possibly for the foreseeable future. He tweeted this out on Monday, which has Falcons fans prepared for the worst.
This sucks…
— Takkarist McKinley (@Takk) September 17, 2018
Losing McKinley might be one too many players on the defensive side to overcome. This group, that entered the season as intimidating as they come, would be without not only three starters, but the best player at each individual level of the defense. By the way, it is only week three.
And McKinley was not the only Falcons defensive starter to go down. Derrick Shelby suffered a groin strain as well. Coming into the season, Atlanta’s defensive line was already thin, but one without McKinley and Shelby has me cringing just thinking about it.
Hopefully, the Falcons will come back with much better news than last week. According to Will McFadden, Beat reporter for the Atlanta Falcons, updates will be coming on all three Wednesday.
Updates on Andy Levitre, Derrick Shelby and Takk McKinley coming on Wednesday #Falcons
— William McFadden (@willmcfadden) September 17, 2018