Panthers at Chargers Wednesday injury report: McCaffrey to IR

As the Panthers begin to prepare for their road game against the Los Angeles Chargers they had two players on the sidelines during today’s practice session with an injury: guard Dennis Daley (ankle) and defensive tackle Kawann Short (foot). Defensive end Yetur Gross-Matos (concussion) returned to practice, but in a no contact jersey indicating he is progressing through the protocol.

Christian McCaffrey was placed on injured reserve, but will be eligible to return in three weeks. High ankle sprains will pretty much always take at least that long to heal, so this time frame was pretty expected and gives the Panthers another roster spot to play with.

According to Matt Rhule, Daley COULD be available Sunday. He is currently on week 3 of what was expected to be about a 5 week injury. If the Panthers are also missing Kawann Short again this week, it will make for a roster that many outside the Carolinas will know very little about.

The Panthers also added two players to the injury report as limited participants, guard John Miller (groin/ankle) and defensive end Brian Burns (thigh). Burns was kicked in the thigh at practice, and is not expected to miss any time. Miller’s status in unclear, but usually when groin is involved, that tends to turn into “out.” If Daley is also out, the Panthers are going to be in a lot of trouble at guard. I’d expect at that point Greg Little will be asked to step in.

Panthers injury report

Did not practice

G Dennis Daley (ankle)
DT Kawann Short (foot)

Limited participation in practice

DE Yetur Gross-Matos (concussion)
G John Miller (groin/ankle)
DE Brian Burns (thigh)

Practice Status

Did not participate in practice = 0% of a player’s normal repetitions
Limited participation in practice = Less than 100% of a player’s normal repetitions
Full participation in practice = 100% of a player’s normal repetitions

Game Status

Out = Player will not play
Doubtful = Player unlikely to play
Questionable = Uncertain if player will play