Thoughts on the Major NFL Training Camp Injuries

Though it has only been about a week since training camps opened for the 2013-14 NFL season, we have already seen multiple season-ending injuries occur, delivering crushing blows to major contenders in the process.  On Saturday, Eagles WR Jeremy Maclin suffered a torn right ACL during training camp practice, ending his season before it even began.  Shortly after, word got out that Dennis Pitta, tight end for the defending champion Baltimore Ravens, needed surgery to repair a fractured and dislocated hip following a collision in practice.  Despite early reports that he would miss the season opener, as it turned out, Pitta was lost for the year as well.   A day later, Broncos center Dan Koppen suffered a torn ACL of his own, ending his season and perhaps even his career.  And a few days prior to that, it was revealed that the newly-signed Percy Harvin of the Seattle Seahawks had a partial tear of his hip labrum and might required season-ending surgery.  Crazy stuff.  Here's what this means for each of the contenders.

The loss of Jeremy Maclin is incredibly devastating for the Philadelphia Eagles but it is by no means a death blow.  New head coach Chip Kelly, formerly of the Oregon Ducks, likes to run the football.  We know that. His success at Oregon was based off a highly productive, up-tempo offense that always set the pace for the game.  That means a heavy emphasis on running the ball, and that the Eagles will do with stud running back LeSean McCoy and promising youngster Bryce Brown.  What was already going to be one of the most run-heavy offenses in the NFL is going to become all the more so now with Maclin's injury.  This is especially the case since we don't know what's going on with the quarterback situation.  Despite some rumblings that Michael Vick was falling behind Nick Foles on the depth chart (some said he might even be cut before the season), Vick has garnered the majority of the first-team reps in training camp thus far.  Plus there's still the presence of rookie Matt Barkley to cloud things up.  WR DeSean Jackson will probably see an expanded role now but between the cloudiness of the quarterback situation, the nature of Chip Kelly's offense, and unproven Riley Cooper moving up the depth chart to WR #2, it's hard to imagine the Eagles putting the ball in the air very much this season.  The real loser here is Maclin who is still only 25 years of age.  Not only is this the second torn ACL he's suffered (he tore it in college a few years back), but he was entering a contract year to literally add insult to injury.  Real shame.

Dennis Pitta's injury is even more crushing for the Baltimore Ravens.  Pitta served as quarterback Joe Flacco's safety net many times down the stretch last season, particularly in the playoffs, and Flacco was set to rely on him even more with Anquan Boldin now in San Francisco.  Last year, Pitta broke out to establish himself as a legitimate member of the second tier of tight ends in the NFL (right up there with the likes of Jason Witten, Tony Gonzalez, and Vernon Davis).  Now, he is gone for the year and it looks like the Ravens' passing attack is going to be the Torrey Smith show in 2013.  Granted, the Ravens still have Ed Dickson to fill in at tight end and they just signed free agent Visanthe Shiancoe, but neither is even close to the receiver that Pitta is.  If there's a silver lining to all of this, it's that the injury amped up the Ravens' sense of urgency in re-signing fullback Vonta Leach (a deal which they closed just today).  Re-signing the best fullback in the NFL means good things for Ray Rice and up and comer Bernard Pierce.  So the Ravens have that going for them.

The news that center Dan Koppen tore his ACL as well is disappointing for the Denver Broncos, but they should be able to overcome it.  It's still a shame since the Broncos just signed the former New England Patriot after original starting center JD Walton was lost to an ankle injury and also because Koppen still had a lot left in the tank, something that might be lost now given his age and the nature of his injury.  But still, the Broncos have one of the best offensive lines in the NFL, anchored by former Boise State Bronco Ryan Clady, and while they might have to put their thinking caps on to fill in the void at center, it is something that the Broncos will be able to survive.

While the injury to Percy Harvin is the only one that isn't season-ending as of right now, it will probably have the greatest impact if it were to take a turn for the worst.  Harvin was acquired from the Vikings in the offseason as the Seahawks really liked his dual threat as a top 15 receiver and a rusher occassionally when need be.  Additionally, his ability to line up both in the slot and outside of the slot, plus his ability to serve as a decoy when necessary makes him a real asset.  Now if his hip injury causes him to miss significant time, it puts a damper on the ceiling of exciting young QB Russell Wilson.  The addition of Harvin was supposed to give Wilson a legitimate and explosive weapon in his receiving corps.  And though Wilson did just fine with the likes of Sidney Rice and Golden Tate last year, Seattle's offense would be that much more exciting with Percy Harvin catching passes down the field.  Should Harvin miss time, the likes of Marshawn Lynch and Robert Turbin will be relied on even more and they may just go the way of the aforementioned Eagles: going from a run-heavy team to a ridiculously run-heavy team.  We'll just have to wait and see and hope everything turns out OK with Harvin.