It didn’t take long for the Oakland Raiders to come back to earth after an impressive win over the Denver Broncos on Monday Night Football. Following a week filled with much turmoil, the Raiders looked like a new team compared to last season. They succeeded on offense, defense and even had some great special teams play.
Much of the team’s success was due to how well the defensive backfield played. Unfortunately, Gareon Conley had to be taken out of the game on a stretcher due to a neck injury and it was revealed Tuesday that Johnathan Abram hurt his rotator cuff. There have been updates to both injuries.
Gareon Conley Back at Practice
In what seemed like the scariest scene of the first week on the 2019 NFL season, Gareon Conley had to be taken off the field on a stretcher after a collision with a teammate. Fortunately, it looked a lot worse than it actually was. The starting cornerback for the Raiders quickly took to social media late Monday night to let fans know that he was okay.
If Conley would’ve missed a lot of time, it would’ve been a massive blow to the defense. With the Kansas City Chiefs coming to town, the Raiders need all the pass defense help they can get. Luckily, it looks like Conley should be able to suit up to face off against the Patrick Mahomes-led offense. He was back for Wednesday’s practice, according to Matt Kawahara of The San Francisco Chronicle.
Gareon Conley, carted off the field on Monday night, is out here at the start of #Raiders practice
Now, practice doesn’t necessarily mean he’s going to play Sunday, but it is a very good sign. Conley has shown great improvement since his rookie season and could develop into a shutdown cornerback for the team. If he can play well against the Chiefs, the Raiders may have finally found their replacement for Nnamdi Asomugha.
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Johnathan Abram Supposed to Have Surgery on Friday
Unfortunately, the good news was overshadowed by some really bad news. It looks like Abram hurt his rotator cuff and will be getting surgery to repair the issue on Friday, per ESPN’s Josina Anderson.
I’m told that #Raiders S Johnathan Abram’s surgery on his labrum is currently scheduled for Friday, at this time, per source.
This surgery would mean that Abram’s season is over just when it began. This is just as big as the potential loss of Conley would’ve been. He was the starting safety and first-round pick for the team and played well against the Broncos. Abram is expected to be a large part of the Raiders defense for the future, but it looks like he’ll have to wait until 2020 to make his impact known. Abram took to social media to react to the injury.
“If I’m going out, I’m going out with a bang..” said Abram in his caption.
Shortly after, The Athletic’s Vic Tafur revealed that Gruden confirmed Abram is indeed done for the year due to the injury.
Abram is out for the year, Gruden said
Per Tafur, Gruden stated that even with the injury, Abram would “probably play this week if I let him.”
The hard-hitting safety may just be too hard of a hitter for his body to handle it. Hopefully, this is just a minor setback and he can come back even stronger next season.
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Raiders Injury Updates: Gareon Conley Status & Brutal Johnathan Abram News