As the NFL heads into the regular season through preseason games, the list of injured players has been steadily growing. As of Week 3 of the preseason, the injury list now includes Tony Romo of the Dallas Cowboys, Cedric Peerman of the Cincinnati Bengals and Brandon Marshall of the New York Jets.
Romo injured his back during the Cowboys' preseason game against the Seattle Seahawks in Thursday last week. Although it is not yet exactly clear when he will be able to play as the team's quarterback again, ESPN noted that it might take around six to 10 weeks before he fully recovers.
This means the Dallas franchise might enter the regular season without the quarterback. And, given his age at 36, the Cowboys could move forward by getting a new QB. After all, following his injury, the team might start reconsidering its decision on relying on Romo as its full-time passer.
Although Romo has a chance to return within the next couple of months, things are looking a bit grim for the Peerman, the Bengals running back. The athlete factured his left arm on Sunday during a game against the Jacksonville Jaguars.
The team has not yet released a timetable for his return but various sources are speculating that he might be out for the rest of the regular season due to the seriousness of his injury. The Bengals' cornerback Adam Jones and receiver A.J. Green also suffered injuries during last weekend's game but their conditions are not as serious as that of Peerman.
Unlike Peerman and Romo, Marshall's injury did not happen during a game. He decided not to join the Jets in their previous games due to the soreness in his hip, which has been bothering him since 2010. In fact, from 2010 to 2013, he already had three hip surgeries.
Although his condition is not that serious, the recurring nature of the injury could endanger his status with the team, especially since the regular season is fast approaching. If Marshall isn't able to manage his condition within the next few months, then he could end up sitting out some of the Jets' games this year.
As previously noted by Terrell Suggs, the rush linebacker of the Baltimore Ravens, the preseason poses a serious threat to NFL teams because of the risk of injury.
"Anytime you line up on a football field and risk getting hurt, it's out there," he told the Baltimore Sun. "Truth be told, we need some of these games, just maybe not four; maybe three, maybe two."
