Redskins’ tackle Kevin Bowen suffers ankle injury at OTAs
By Ian Cummings
For fringe players, the offseason is a very important time of the year. It’s a time where a player can make or break their roster chances.
Unfortunately for one such player, Kevin Bowen, he suffered an ankle injury this past week at OTAs, further placing his roster chances in doubt. The injury is not reported to be serious, but no matter the severity, the issue will set Bowen back in the race to make the 90-man roster.
The injury reportedly occurred during Wednesday’s practice. Bowen was blocking on a play when he apparently tweaked his ankle and fell to the turf, obviously in considerable pain. The event sent the practice bubble into silence, and many players came to his side. He was carted off the field, but according to ESPN’s John Keim, the injury is not as severe as it appeared to be.
FWIW: Was told the injury to OT Kevin Bowen's left leg was not serious. Bowen had been carted off the practice field Wednesday.
— John Keim (@john_keim) June 9, 2017
Bowen was signed as an undrafted free agent out of East Central University in 2016. He made it to preseason last year, but he was injured in the first preseason game and promptly placed on injured reserve.
He had been splitting first team reps at left tackle with Vinston Painter, due to the absences of Trent Williams and Ty Nsekhe thus far. At 6-foot-9, Bowen is a mammoth tackle and a sight to behold. As long as the injury isn’t serious, the Redskins should give him a chance to get back into the swing of things.
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All one can do is hope for the best in the Kevin Bowen situation. Although the gargantuan offensive lineman was no lock to make the roster, he’s been a regular at voluntary workouts, and if he continues to put the work in, he could pick up a bigger role as a backup. But first, he’ll have to get healthy.