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Report: Trent Murphy suffers ACL tear, out for 2017 season

By Jacob Camenker

LANDOVER, MD - NOVEMBER 20: Quarterback Aaron Rodgers (12) of the Green Bay Packers carries the ball against defensive end Trent Murphy (93) of the Washington Redskins in the second quarter at FedExField on November 20, 2016 in Landover, Maryland. (Photo by Rob Carr/Getty Images)
LANDOVER, MD - NOVEMBER 20: Quarterback Aaron Rodgers (12) of the Green Bay Packers carries the ball against defensive end Trent Murphy (93) of the Washington Redskins in the second quarter at FedExField on November 20, 2016 in Landover, Maryland. (Photo by Rob Carr/Getty Images) /
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The Washington Redskins have suffered a blow to their defense. Trent Murphy suffered an ACL tear in their first preseason game and will miss the season.

Nothing is worse than seeing a player get injured in the first preseason game of the year. The Washington Redskins had a couple of players suffer injuries, but there had been some hope that they would be okay. Unfortunately, that is not the case.

One of the injured Redskins was Trent Murphy. The fourth year pass rusher had a breakout year in 2016, but was suspended the first four games of the season for violating the league’s PED policy. He was in action on Thursday night as the starter, getting in some reps to stay in shape for the season.

During the game, Murphy went down with an injured knee. The Redskins initially reported that the injury was a knee sprain, but it turns out that it was a bit worse than that. NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport is reporting that Murphy will miss the season with a torn ACL, as he said on his official Twitter account.

This could be a major loss for the team. They have some quality players at the rush linebacker position, but most of them are based off upside. Preston Smith is a highly athletic player, but he is currently out with an ankle injury. Junior Galette hasn’t played a snap for the Redskins in the past two plus seasons, and he sat out the first preseason game with a hamstring injury. Ryan Anderson was a second round pick, but he may need time to develop.

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Murphy was going to be out for four games already, so being without him for a month was not a big deal. However, he could have been an impact player for the team in the other 12 games. Murphy has a unique skill set for the edge, where he primarily uses his strength to get to the backfield but also has surprising athleticism. He was expected to continue to grow and was going to be a threat to get double digit sacks.

Now, the Redskins need to make sure that they find the proper replacement for Murphy. They have a lot of candidates, but it remains to be seen which guy will take over the role. Smith should be the favorite for now, but he is unlikely to play as well as Murphy did last season.

Next: Redskins Breakdown for preseason Week 1

Losing Murphy could hurt the Redskins badly. This was a blow that the team couldn’t afford to suffer, and now they will be searching for a starter across from Ryan Kerrigan for yet another season.

Update: Murphy has also torn his MCL, per ESPN’s Adam Schefter. That will make his comeback a little harder.

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