What do injuries to Spencer Ware and Julian Edelman mean for the season-opener for the Chiefs and Patriots?
Fans of the Kansas City Chiefs and New England Patriots held their collective breath last night, as we saw running back Spencer Ware and wide receiver Julian Edelman go down with potentially devastating knee injuries. With the season opener only 11 days away, let’s take a look at what effect those injuries will have on that game, and the upcoming season. We will start with Edelman.
Edelman’s injury is a big one, that should be obvious. The Patriots believe it to be a torn ACL, which of course would end his season. Edelman is a very good receiver, yet, I believe he is still underrated as to the impact he has on the Patriots offense. He and Brady have been playing together for a long time, they have an incredible chemistry. Edelman is very quick and possesses very soft hands. A lot of people will try to downplay his injury, saying that Belichick can plug anyone in his spot, and that is true to a degree. But no matter how good a game planner Belichick is, Edelman is not a guy you can easily replace. This one will hurt.
Spencer Ware’s injury is a little harder to evaluate at the moment, given we don’t know exactly what it is. The good news is that the Chiefs seem fairly certain that his ACL is unharmed, meaning this likely will not end Ware’s season. As far as the impact this will have on the season, it may not be as devastating as you would think. Ware is a good player, don’t get me wrong. But the Chiefs are very deep at running back this year. While Kareem Hunt is a bit unpolished, he is the type of physical runner that should step in an contribute immediately. The Chiefs will miss Ware’s tough, physical running style, but as far as injuries to starters go, things could be worse for the Chiefs.
What does this mean for the season opener?
The biggest question remaining with these two injuries is what kind of impact they will have on the opener, which is less than two weeks away. The short answer? This will hurt the Patriots more than the Chiefs. Edelman’s injury changes so much about the game plan for this one. Not only is it one less target for Tom Brady, but it is one less talented receiver for the Chiefs to cover. With Edelman out, Marcus Peters will likely take on Brandon Cooks. With Chris Hogan and Danny Amendola the next receivers in line, the Chiefs can play them one-on-one and put more emphasis on slowing down Gronkowski. Edelman’s injury could make Bob Sutton’s night a lot easier.
Ware’s injury will effect what the Chiefs want to do on offense to an extent, but again, I believe Hunt has the talent to come in and produce at or above the level Ware has played as of late. One positive with Hunt is that he is an unknown. Belichick won’t have a ton of film on him to game plan around. This could bode well for the Chiefs.
These are the kind of injuries you hate to see, especially with the regular season just around the corner. But these are veteran teams with high quality coaching staffs. They will find ways to fill their roles. What do you think Addicts? What kind of impact will this have on the season opener?