Kansas City Chiefs: What to Make of Eric Fisher’s Thumb Injury

Brad Penner-USA TODAY Sports

Injuries in the preseason can drive a fan base crazy, especially when the injured player happens to be the No. 1 overall pick in the 2013 NFL draft.

That player is Eric Fisher, and the fan base is none other but all of you, addicts: Chiefs fans.

The good news is, there doesn’t appear to be much reason fret. You can take a deep breath and let out a sigh or relief.

Fisher’s thumb is obviously banged up, but it doesn’t appear to be that bad. According to a report from Randy Covitz of The Kansas City Star, Fisher’s injury is a minor one:

"As it turned out, Chiefs coach Andy Reid said Fisher’s injury was minor, a sore left thumb. But Fisher spent quite a bit of time in the trainer’s room with ice on the thumb after the 17-13 loss to the Saints.“I just banged up my thumb a little bit,” Fisher said. “My hands have been banged up all camp. We’ll find out more … but I’m feeling all right.”"

Thankfully the Chiefs’ No. 1 overall pick is an offensive lineman and not a quarterback or wide receiver, for example. Linemen have been known to play through grueling hand injuries. In fact, it could be said that linemen take their hand injuries as a point of pride.

If your fingers aren’t crooked, you’re obviously not doing something right, right?

The trenches are a nasty place, but from a technical standpoint, using your hands to punch into the chest plate of a defender is crucial for an offensive linemen. Every now and then something is going to get stuck, jammed, pulled or grabbed.

It’s just part of the game.

The thumb is obviously important for dexterity, but we’ve seen guys go out there with those big  clubs on their hands before and get the job done.

So, what should you make of this injury as a Chief’s fan? Don’t make anything of it.

If anything, Fisher and the Chiefs’ staff were playing it safe. No use in going out there just to hurt in more. It’s game one of the preseason, after all.

Even if Fisher misses some practice in the next week or two, it won’t mean much. Staying healthy is part of the struggle in the preseason, and even though every rep is valuable for a rookie, precautions aren’t worth over-analyzing at this point.

In fact, if this was the regular season, there’s a good chance Fisher would have never even gone into the locker room, and this wouldn’t be a story.

Move along folks, there’s nothing to see here.

Andrew Kulha

Editor, Arrowhead Addict