DeAngelo Williams Uncertain to Play Vs.Pittsburgh Steelers

DeAngelo Williams is uncertain for the Sept. 21 Sunday Night Football matchup against the Pittsburgh Steelers. 

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ESPN Carolina Panthers reporter David Newton reported on Sept. 15 that Williams has recuperated from the thigh injury which sidelined him in the 24-7 win against the Detroit Lions last Sunday:

“The Carolina Panthers expect all-time leading rusher DeAngelo Williams to return to practice on Wednesday and be ready for Sunday night’s game against Pittsburgh. 

“Williams missed Sunday’s 24-7 victory against Detroit that improved Carolina to 2-0 with a thigh injury that flared up after Wednesday’s practice. 

“Without him, the Panthers rushed for only 62 yards, the team’s fewest since Week 10 of the 2012 season when it had 52 yards on 21 carries against (the) Denver (Broncos). Thirty-seven of those came from Jonathan Stewart, and 22 of those came on one run.

“‘It was a tough day,’ Carolina coach Ron Rivera said on Monday. 

“Rivera hopes Williams, who led the team in rushing with 72 yards on 14 carries in the opener, will provide a boost. If anything, he will restore depth to a unit that saw Mike Tolbert suffer a shoulder contusion in the second half and Fozzy Whittaker to go down with a quad injury.

“Rivera said Whittaker could be listed as week to week. Tolbert appears all right.”

Rivera also gave an update on the status of the Panthers’ running back corps to Max Henson of the team’s official website on Sept. 15:

“At one point in the second half of Sunday’s game against the Detroit Lions, the Panthers were down to one healthy running back. 

“DeAngelo Williams was inactive with a thigh injury, fullback Mike Tolbert was injured on a goal-line rush and Fozzy Whittaker injured his quad while recovering a punt on special teams. 

“That meant Jonathan Stewart, who started in place of Williams, was the last one standing. 

#Panthers Thursday injury report shows DeAngelo Williams did not participate in practice today. pic.twitter.com/JSF0n3oNJa

— Mike Leslie (@MikeLeslieOnFOX) September 18, 2014

“But on Monday, head coach Ron Rivera had some encouraging news about Carolina’s battered backfield. ‘

“‘Mike is OK. He is a little sore,’ Rivera said. ‘We’ll see how he progresses with his treatment. 

“‘He kind of hyperventilated on the field because he couldn’t get a clean gasp of air. He’s pretty sore because he took a nice shot to the sternum.’

“Whittaker pulled his quad, and Rivera classified the injury as ‘week-by-week.’ Williams is expected to return to practice this week. 

“‘DeAngelo is looking pretty good,’ Rivera said. ‘We’ll see how he is on Wednesday on the practice field.'” 

However, Williams missed practice on Wednesday and Thursday, per a separate blog by Henson:

“The only players to miss practice both Wednesday and Thursday were running backs DeAngelo Williams (thigh) and Fozzy Whittaker (thigh). Wide receiver Jason Avant (thigh), who was limited Wednesday, did not participate on Thursday. 

“‘A little concerned about Fozzy but not as concerned about DeAngelo,’ Rivera said. ‘He ran a lot on the side and did a lot of work. Hopefully, he’ll take some team reps tomorrow. It’s not like he hasn’t been working. We are being cautious with him.’ 

“The Panthers are also being cautious with Tolbert, who was limited on Thursday. Tolbert suffered a chest injury against the Lions when defensive tackle Nick Fairley delivered a thunderous hit near the goal line. Tolbert said it was the hardest he’d ever been hit. 

“‘When a D-lineman hits you square, it is going to hurt. He landed on me, and he landed on me hard,’ Tolbert said. ‘I’m used to giving out the blows, not getting them.’

“Tolbert said he’s hopeful he’ll be able to play against the Steelers on Sunday. In the event Carolina needs to add a running back from the practice squad, Rivera said undrafted rookie Darrin Reaves is first in line. 

“As for filling the spot on the active roster, Rivera said the Panthers are in no particular hurry.

“‘Remember, we still have to have inactives, so if you don’t have 53 you don’t have to worry about seven inactives,’ Rivera explained. ‘There is no real hurry. We can just keep an eye on our guys and see what’s happening.'” 

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