What this week’s biggest NFL injuries really mean for fans and contenders: Look out for the Eagles and Ravens

We’re at a point in the NFL season where we can start weeding out teams that are worth keeping an eye on. More importantly, we have a solid idea of which teams are real contenders. There are still a lot of teams that can fall into that category, but at least now we can all stop wondering if/when Terry McLaurin is going to come back from his quad thing, regardless of Jayden Daniels' status.

There are teams that matter, and teams that don’t matter. These are the big injuries to keep an eye on from the teams that still matter. 

The NFL is going back to Europe this week. There’s a Sunday morning game in Berlin that starts at 9:30 a.m. ET. The Colts left on Thursday night, but they left without one guy… and it’s not great. 

NFL's most meaningful injury updates for Week 10

1. DeForest Buckner, DT, Colts: Neck
2. Brian Thomas Jr., WR, Jaguars: Ankle
3. C.J. Stroud, QB, Texans: Concussion
4. Nolan Smith, Edge, Eagles: Triceps
5. Matthew Golden, WR, Packers: Shoulder
6. No one, at all, Ravens: Pretty/crazy

DeForest Buckner, DT, Colts: Neck

The bad news first: DeForest Buckner has been downgraded to out. The good news: Now the Colts can plan for a game without him. The even worse news: He’s not just out, he’s on IR. 

Stopping the Falcons starts with stopping Bijan Robinson. That’s a lot easier when you have your best defensive lineman on the field… and the Colts won’t have him on Sunday morning in Berlin.

Fortunately for the Colts, Bijan Robinson does most of his damage when he runs outside the tackles; 90 of his carries and 477 of his yards have come from outside runs, and 28 of his carries and 118 of his yards have come from between the tackles (per NFLPro). 

It sounds obvious (because it is), but he’s infinitely better when he’s in space. The Falcons are just good at getting him in space. Regardless, it’s still a bad situation for Indianapolis.

Brian Thomas Jr., WR, Jaguars: Ankle

When you’re playing the Texans, you need every single offensive weapon available to you, and it’s shaping up to look like the Jaguars are going to be without Brian Thomas Jr., who is their leading receiver… and also the guy who has the most drops (9) in the NFL (let’s not focus on that, though).

Thomas has been a DNP on Jacksonville’s injury report for both Wednesday and Thursday with an ankle injury. That’s absolutely not what you want. 

On top of that, the Jags’ second-most-productive receiver, Travis Hunter, just went on the IR. That means any sort of passing attack Jacksonville tries to mount is going to have to go through Parker Washington, Dyami Brown, Brenton Strange, and Jakobi Meyers (who just joined the team on Tuesday). That’s not exactly what you want against one of the three best defenses in the NFL.

C.J. Stroud, QB, Texans: Concussion

Last Sunday, C.J. Stroud left the game against the Broncos when his head got bounced off the turf while he was sliding at the beginning of the second quarter. That means for the second consecutive Sunday, you get to turn your clocks back, but this time you’re going all the way to 2022 because it’s Davis Mills time. 

Against a really good Denver defense, Mills finished 17-of-30 for 137 yards, zero touchdowns, and more importantly, zero interceptions. That’s kind of a big deal because interceptions are kind of his thing. In 2022, he threw a league-leading 15 interceptions (in 2021, it was a measly 10).

Again, the Broncos have a sick defense, but they’re not getting boatloads of turnovers (they have five interceptions and three fumble recoveries). 

The Jaguars’ defense is a different story. They have 11 interceptions on the season. The Texans' offense has been terrible with a healthy starting quarterback who doesn’t throw a lot of interceptions. You have to imagine that this weekend, that offense is going to not only be worse, but also infinitely more prone to giving the ball away.

Just a heads up: Prepare for wildly frustrating mayhem. 

Nolan Smith, Edge, Eagles: Triceps

The Eagles' hammerhead edge rusher, Nolan Smith, is coming off IR in Week 10, but he’s not the only change on that defensive line… Specifically, with their edges/defensive ends.

The last time we saw them, it was a rotation of Josh Uche, Jalyx Hunt, Patrick Johnson, and a little bit of Jihaad Campbell. This week, you’re going to be seeing those four guys, but also Brandon Graham, Nolan Smith, and Jaelan Phillips. That’s a whole lot better. 

Will that matter a whole lot against the Packers? Maybe. Jordan Love is a super hard guy to sack. He’s only gone down 11 times all season, which is the fourth fewest in the league.

However, when he’s not pressured, Love’s completion percentage is 0.82, his EPA per dropback is +0.58, and his passer rating is 124.9. When he is pressured, that completion percentage drops to 0.43, EPA per dropback is -0.43, and his passer rating is 56.8.

That’s unbelievably significant. Per SumerSports, the delta in completion percentage ranks 36th out of 36 qualified quarterbacks, the EPA per dropback is 32nd, and the passer rating is 33rd. 

If this new-look edge rusher group hits the way the Eagles want them to, Jordan Love is going to have a really tough time come Monday night. 

Matthew Golden, WR, Packers: Shoulder

Matthew Golden hasn’t exactly been the killer that you would’ve thought the Packers wanted him to be when they drafted him in the third round of the 2025 draft, so this injury is less about him than it is about what the Packers are going to do when they’re throwing the ball.

Tucker Kraft tore his ACL in Week 9, and this is going to be their first without him. That’s huge because he’s been their best and most effective pass catcher this season. Without him, you have to imagine that they’re going to be spreading the ball around to all of their receivers. 

Golden, Christian Watson, Dontavion Wicks, and Romeo Doubs are going to be asked to do a lot more… But Golden, Watson, and Wicks all showed up as limited participants on the Packers’ injury report on Thursday. 

Again, this game is getting played on Monday night, so there’s a lot of time for things to change, but it’s still something worth paying attention to. 

Bucky Irving, RB, Buccaneers: Foot/Shoulder

Bucky Irving exists, right? Like, I’m not just imagining him as a football player, right? The dude hasn’t played a snap since Week 4, and he’s been on the Buccaneers injury report exclusively as a DNP on every week’s practice report since then. 

You would think that they’d either toss him on the IR or that he’d be doing better after their bye week. You’d be wrong, and it’s still going to be the Rachaad White show against the Patriots in Week 10. 

That’s significant because the Patriots have one of, if not the best, run defenses in the NFL. They’ve allowed the fewest rushing yards per game, the fourth-fewest rushing yards per attempt, and the fourth-lowest EPA per rush. They absolutely hate running.

No one, at all, Ravens: Pretty/crazy

We’re just weeks removed from the Ravens’ injury report being as long as a public high school’s graduate list… and now, there’s no one. That’s unbelievable. 

If there was a chance for the Ravens to fix their season, it was going to have to start with the roster’s health. The only place they have to go now is up. That's not what the Vikings want to hear.

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