Washington Commanders defensive end Chase Young went through his second week of practice since being activated from the physically unable to perform list. Yet, when or if he will make his 2022 season debut remains in the air.
According to NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport, the Commanders will not activate Young for Monday’s game against the Philadelphia Eagles.
Commanders head coach Ron Rivera’s assessment of Young’s situation this week foreshadowed Young’s availability against the Eagles. Young has made “incremental” progress, according to Rivera. But the team will continue to move with caution related to Young.
“The big thing is we’re not gonna play him unless we feel absolutely that he’s ready to roll,” Rivera said, per JP Finlay of NBC Sports Washington. “He’s had a couple of good practices. It’s just that there’s some things he just right now isn’t comfortable doing which we get. But the things that he does, he’s doing pretty doggone well. So, we’re pretty excited about that. It’s just a matter of now I think the conditioning aspect of it and the confidence in it and that only comes with I think reps and practices.”
The Commanders practiced indoors this week, forcing the team to pull back on Young. Rapoport added in his report Young has a real chance to make his 2022 debut next week against the Houston Texans.
Coincidentally, Monday marks precisely one year since Young tore his ACL in a game against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. He had reconstructive surgery on the ACL last year, as doctors used a graft from his left patellar tendon for his right ACL. The procedure has benefits in the long term. But may hinder the short-term.
“He (Young) is in a sense dealing with two surgeries. One is considered the healthy knee, but was then weakened because they took a third of his Patellar tendon,” local physical therapist Wesley Wang recently speculated to Team 980.
“So throughout the recovery process, you have to be maintaining and managing his load to his non-affected side because you are not trying to aggravate that side.”
The Commanders have until Nov. 23 to activate Young for a game. Otherwise, Young must go on injured reserve for the remainder of the season.
Young is in his third season since Washington drafted him second overall in the 2020 draft. He emerged as a top talent in his first season, winning Defensive Rookie of the Year with 7.5 sacks.
However, he struggled last season in Year 2 with 1.5 sacks in nine games before tearing his ACL. Now, Monday will mark the 18th straight game he has missed. If not activated by the Nov. 23 deadline, Young will be lost for the entire season.
