Darren McFadden avoids a major injury

Oakland Raiders running back Darren McFadden (20) runs with the ball during the second half against the Denver Broncos at Sports Authority Field at Mile High. The Broncos won 37-21. Mandatory Credit: Chris Humphreys-USA TODAY Sports

Oakland Raiders running back Darren McFadden left yesterday’s game against the Washington Redskins with a hamstring injury in the first quarter, and Rashad Jennings took over starting running back duties with McFadden out for the remainder of the game. Earlier today, Raiders head coach Dennis Allen stated that he doesn’t know how long McFadden will be out, and that question still cannot be answered. However, there is some good news that likely answers some questions about McFadden’s injury, and that is the fact that it isn’t serious. According to the NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport, McFadden’s injury isn’t “major”, but he also “avoided a serious injury”.

McFadden’s status is definitely up in the air for next week’s game against the bitter rival San Diego Chargers, and Raiders fans can only hope that Darren McFadden will be able to play as opposed to seeing a start from Rashad Jennings. It will be interesting to see when McFadden starts practicing this week, if at all, and I think we’ll start to get a better idea of where he’s at on Thursday.

So far this season, McFadden has benefited from Terrelle Pryor’s arm strength and running ability, as he has piled up 215 yards on 53 carries for an average of 4.1 yards per carry and two touchdowns so far this season. The Chargers run defense hasn’t played well so far this year statistically, but they are certainly battle tested and have faced some really talented backs in the likes of DeMarco Murray, Chris Johnson, LeSean McCoy, Arian Foster, and Ben Tate.

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