Colts wide Josh Downs couldn’t play because he hurt his knee.
The Indianapolis Colts say broad receiver Josh Downs was doubtful with an injury, but Adam Schefter of ESPN says he wants to play against the Panthers of Carolina on Sunday.
While practicing, Downs hurt his knee and was added to the injury report on Thursday. It was possible for him to train a little on Friday, and the final medical report marked him as questionable.
Based on Schefter’s story, Downs is “tracking to play” and will work out before the game to see how his body feels.
It is said that Downs plans to play even though he won’t be fully fit like most players have reached this point within the season.
It’s been hard to throw the ball without Downs during the first half of this season. At the moment, he has the second most targets (56), catches (40), and yards (473).
He has the third most catching yards among rookie wide receivers, after Puka Nacua (795 yards) or Jordan Addison (482 yards).
Even if Downs isn’t 100%, Gardner Minshew can still count on him as a short-area target. In the passing game, Michael Pittman Jr. is going to continue to get most of the targets.
The Colts added Downs to their injury report for Week 9 on Thursday. He practiced in a limited way on Thursday and Friday and was listed as doubtful for the weekend because of the knee injury.
He isn’t fully healthy yet, but he looks like he will be able to do a morning warmup to determine how his knee feels.
But because the first game starts at 4:05 p.m. ET on Sunday, we won’t know what’s going on with him until long after the early games start.
If Downs is hurt or can’t play at all, starting wide receivers Michael Pittman, Alec Pierce, as well as Isaiah McKenzie would get more turns.
Week 7 is over. Surprise wins in football have thrown the world into chaos (looking at you, Mac Jones), as well as fantasy managers need to find their way around the Week 8 waiver wire if they want to make a run at the playoffs.
Due to a knee injury, Downs was limited to practice on Thursday and Friday, and he was thought to be doubtful for the game.
He then left during the first half because of a knee problem, and it was said that he might not be able to play again.
He was then ruled out following halftime, even though he successfully caught one pass over 10 yards.
Downs has been very important. In nine games, he has caught 41 passes over 483 yards and two scores.
As a result, the Colts have been short on receivers, and experienced Isaiah McKenzie steps in for Downs.
Before the game, McKenzie had only played 44 field snaps for the Colts, which is about 8% of the the team’s offensive plays.
This Sunday, the Colts’ young slot receiver left the game against Carolina in the second half because of a knee injury. He couldn’t play in the rest for the game. Isaiah McKenzie took his place.
It’s hard to say which play caused the problem, but Downs hurt his knee in practice on Thursday and brought it into the game.
Downs endured through all of Friday’s practice, but he wasn’t sure if he would be able to play in the game. He chose to participate anyway, testing his knee during morning warmups.
Downs made a big splash as a rookie from North Carolina picked in the third round. He caught more passes than any other Colts player in team history in his first seven games. Going into Sunday, he was third in the NFL in both catches (40) and yards (473).