Washington Football Team OL Saahdiq Charles out for 2-3 weeks
By Ian Cummings
Saahdiq Charles logged his first start for the Washington Football Team at left guard, but left due to injury after just two plays.
The Washington Football Team made a heavily-anticipated lineup change when they filed rookie Saahdiq Charles into the starting unit at left guard, sending Wes Martin to the bench. The move was met with excitement, as Martin had performed poorly to that point.
Charles himself also spawned much of the excitement, however; coming out of the 2020 NFL Draft, he was viewed as a potential steal at the beginning of the fourth round, and his amalgamation of traits — chief among them his athleticism, solid density, and natural leverage — pointed to high upside at both offensive tackle and offensive guard.
Charles sat out the first five games of the season with a calf injury, and after just two snaps last Sunday against the Giants, he again left the field, this time due to a knee injury. Now, per The Athletic’s Ben Standig, we have confirmation that Charles will miss more time. Standig states that Charles is likely to miss 2-3 weeks with a dislocated kneecap.
Washington OL Saahdiq Charles suffered a dislocated knee cap in Sunday’s loss at NYG, per source. Current timeline is 2-3 weeks sidelined, hopefully. Washington faces Dallas next then a Week 8 bye. Rough break during first career start. (@tompelissero 1st).
— Ben Standig (@BenStandig) October 19, 2020
While it’s a relief that Charles’ knee injury is not a long-term ailment, it’s disappointing that Charles was taken away from the field so quickly after returning. In his place, one of Wes Martin or Wes Schweitzer will likely fill in at the left guard position. Seeing that Schweitzer performed better than expected in place of Brandon Scherff at right guard, he seems like the most logical choice.
Charles, meanwhile, will work on recuperating until he’s again healthy enough to return to the field. His injury no doubt sidelines for next week’s divisional matchup against the Cowboys, but after that contest, the Washington Football Team has its bye week, which will allow Charles with some extra time to rest before the team’s rematch with the Giants in Week 9.
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If Charles can’t go against the Giants after the bye week, then it seems as though his likely return mark will be against the Detroit Lions. Whatever the case, Ron Rivera’s offense can use the added push on the interior. But they’ll have to wait a bit longer to get it.