By Sheila Dwyer, Shoulder1 Staff
October 10, 2001
Carolina Panthers’ rookie Chris Weinke may not play through his first season. He has been sitting out of practice since he injured his right shoulder during Sunday’s game against Miami.
The starting quarterback left Sunday’s loss during the third quarter with a sprained shoulder. A subsequent MRI exam revealed no structural damage, but as of Wednesday Weinke was still not practicing.
“I’m not trying to play the old cagey college coach and say we’ll surprise them at the end of the week,” coach George Seifert told the Associated Press. “But I don’t know. We’ll find out at the end of the week.”
At the beginning of the week, Weinke was unable to lift his arm due to inflammation in the shoulder.
“The movement now is 10 times better than it was,” Weinke told the Associated Press on Wednesday. “I’m just kind of playing it by ear, staying focused and continuing to treat it and we’ll just go from there. I don’t have any definite answers.”
Weinke’s injury puts the Panthers in a precarious position. Dameyune Craig, who substituted for Weinke on Sunday, tore ligaments in his foot during the game. On Tuesday, he has season-ending surgery to repair the ligaments, leaving the Panthers without a starting quarterback.
Photo courtesy of www.nfl.com
