ASHBURN, Va. -- The euphoria of the Washington Redskins'
first playoff victory in seven years was tempered Sunday with the
news that three offensive starters could miss next Saturday's NFC
divisional playoff game at Tampa Bay.
Stephen Davis, the NFC's leading rusher, and center Cory Raymer
are both classified as "doubtful," and left tackle Andy Heck is
already ruled out following injuries sustained in Saturday's 27-13
first-round victory over Detroit.
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| Raymer |
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| Davis |
"It's very, very scary," coach Norv Turner said. "We've been
fortunate to go through the season with great health."
The fright would turn to despair if a fourth starter, Pro Bowl
guard Tre' Johnson, gets a suspension for striking an official in the head during a fight in the second half of the Lions' game. A fine is considered the more probable outcome, however, when the league announces Johnson's punishment, possibly as early as Monday.
"It certainly wasn't intentional," Turner said. "It was poor
judgment on Tre's part, and from everything I've heard it would be
a case of being fined."
The Redskins have been one of the healthiest teams in the NFL
this season, one of the big reasons they went 10-6 and won the NFC
East. They lost only 11 man-games due to injuries -- nine on
offense, two on defense. Five of those came when Brad Badger subbed
when guard Keith Smith had a knee injury.
Now disaster has hit all at once, and it came amid the joyous
celebrations of a one-sided home victory in the playoffs. The
Redskins attack isn't same without Davis, and the linemen who would
replace Raymer and Heck are seldom-used backups who didn't come
close to challenging for starting jobs at training camp.
Not to mention the fact that Tampa Bay is ranked third in total
defense this season and has one of the best fronts in the game.
Four linemen -- Warren Sapp, Marcus Jones, Chidi Ahanotu, Brad
Culpepper -- have six sacks or more.
"Their defensive front, it's so quick, so fast," Turner said.
"They've got an outstanding blitz package. If you're not ready to
play, it can be humbling."
Davis sat in the basement of Redskin Park on Sunday with ice on
his left ankle and right knee. He sprained the ankle three weeks
ago at Indianapolis and made his return Saturday. He wasn't 100
percent, but he ran for 119 yards and two touchdowns before
suffering a sprained knee ligament when his leg was hooked by
defensive tackle Dan Owens five minutes into the second quarter.
Asked if he'll be able to play against Tampa Bay, Davis said:
"I'll be ready -- hopefully."
Turner tried to sound as hopeful.
"Stephen says the right things," Turner said. "He certainly
wants to play. I'm an optimist and think he'll play, hope he'll
play. Medically, the problems have been doubled. His ankle is sore
from playing on it yesterday and his knee is sore. I think he's
sorer than he's letting on. There's a reason we're listing him
doubtful."
Davis rushed for 1,405 yards this season, made the Pro Bowl and
averaged 4.8 yards per carry. His backup, Skip Hicks, rushed for
257 yards, averaged 3.3 yards and lacks Davis' vision when it comes
following his blockers. In Saturday's game, Davis averaged 7.9
yards on 15 carries, Hicks averaged just 2.0 on 23 carries for 46
yards.
Heck tore his hamstring on an extra-point attempt in the first
quarter. He was on crutches Sunday and is probably done for the
season.
His backup is fifth-year tackle Kipp Vickers, who actually
started a playoff game with Indianapolis four years ago. Vickers
also started six regular season games for the Colts in 1996, but
hasn't started a game since. He was used sparingly in 11 of 16
regular season games this season.
"He doesn't have the experience Andy has, but one thing is,
he's very physical in the running game," Turner said.
Turner said he will play Vickers ahead of Badger, who moved from guard to start 10 games at left tackle last season in an experiment
that didn't work.
Raymer's situation is the most muddled. He pulled a muscle in
the right side of his rib cage and stayed in the game. Turner said
he felt Raymer would be fine, but trainer Bubba Tyer was much more
cautious.
"He'd be doubtful today," Tyer said. "But we'll just take him
day to day."
Raymer's backup is Mark Fischer, a second-year player who has
never played an offensive snap in the NFL. He was used on special
teams for six games last season and has not played at all this
season.