Willis McGahee will not practice today
Cleveland Browns running back Willis McGahee (26) runs by Jacksonville Jaguars outside linebacker Geno Hayes (55) at FirstEnergy Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Ken Blaze-USA TODAY Sports
Cleveland Browns running back Willis McGahee went down with a head injury in the fourth quarter of the Browns loss to the New England Patriots, as he was hit hard by Patriots middle linebacker Brandon Spikes. The Browns announced after the game that McGahee suffered a concussion on the play, and his status for this week’s matchup against a horrible Chicago Bears run defense is up-in-the-air.
According to the Akron Beacon-Journal’s Nate Ulrich, Browns head coach Rob Chudzinski stated that McGahee will not practice today due to the concussion, and this news doesn’t come as a surprise. It does, however, confirm that McGahee did suffer a concussion of some significance and will be questionable to play this week. He’ll have to pass through all of the mandated concussion tests, but the only stipulation is that he has to pass them before Sunday’s game. Realistically, though, McGahee won’t play unless he is cleared by Saturday, and I think he won’t play if he doesn’t practice this week.
McGahee has averaged just 2.7 yards per carry, but he could be an intriguing option for semi-desperate fantasy owners due to this week’s light matchup against the Chicago Bears. Linebacker Lance Briggs still hasn’t been cleared and is unlikely to play, so the Bears run defense won’t exactly get better. If McGahee can’t go, then look for Chris Ogbonnaya and Fozzy Whitaker to split carries, and hopefully one of those guys can emerge at some point during the final games of the regular season.