As the NFL season hits full stride, teams are already grappling with the brutal, unavoidable side effects of the game.
Physicality is an unavoidable part of the NFL and as the season gets underway, the injury report is already filling up. From training camp setbacks to mid-week practice tweaks, availability can change a team's trajectory in an instant.
Here are the notable players who are dealing with injuries ahead of Week 1 of the NFL season.
San Francisco 49ers defensive coordinator Raheem Morris confirmed Monday that star defensive end Nick Bosa will play in Thursday's season opener against the Los Angeles Rams.
Bosa, who suffered a season-ending ACL tear in Week 3 last year and managed knee tendinitis during training camp, returned to practice last week before traveling with the team to Australia.
"He’s going (to play). We are not hiding that," Morris told reporters.
While the Dallas Cowboys' offense has seen constant turnover in recent seasons, guard Tyler Smith has been a steady anchor for a young offensive line.
Now, the team will have to manage without him after head coach Brian Schottenheimer announced Monday that Smith will undergo thumb surgery and miss 4-to-6 weeks. He is expected to miss at least the first four games of the regular season as he heads to injured reserve.
"Tyler Smith is going to have surgery on his thumb tomorrow morning," Schottenheimer said during his press conference. "It's something that he's just been dealing with."
With Smith sidelined, offensive lineman T.J. Bass is slated to step in for Smith.
Bass joined the team as an undrafted free agent and has made 10 career starts, including five last season. The Cowboys retained him this offseason by placing a second-round restricted free agent tender on him.
The Cowboys are set to open their season on Sunday night when they travel to New York to take on the Giants on Sunday Night Football.
The Carolina Panthers are gearing up to host the Chicago Bears on Sunday, but the status of one of the offense's key playmakers is still up in the air. Head coach Dave Canales spoke to reporters on Monday afternoon, providing a health update on running back Jonathon Brooks.
"Again, we have to just keep taking it one day at a time," Canales said. "He ran out there today, and then we'll evaluate what that looked like. We'll see that and compare it to what he looked like before, and we'll go from there."
Canales said last week he was 'very optimistic' that Brooks would be able to play in Week 1.
If Brooks isn’t ready to go, the expectation is that Chuba Hubbard will receive a full workload in the Panthers' offense. Brooks missed 31 games over his first two NFL seasons after being selected in the second round of the 2024 NFL Draft out of Texas.
Heading into Wednesday night’s season opener against the Seattle Seahawks, the New England Patriots could be without one of their biggest playmakers. According to ESPN, Patriots running back TreVeyon Henderson is still not practicing as he deals with an ankle injury.
Henderson hasn’t practiced for the Patriots since Aug. 24, putting his availability for Wednesday’s opener in doubt. If he’s ruled out, veteran Rhamondre Stevenson might be in line for a heavier workload on Wednesday night.
As of Monday afternoon, TreVeyon Henderson is still sidelined from Patriots practice with an ankle injury. With the season opener less than two days away, his Week 1 availability is firmly in doubt.
Missing Henderson would be a major blow to a revamped Patriots offense. He was a huge part of the offense last season, rushing for 911 yards on 5.1 yards per carry and nine touchdowns while adding 35 catches for 221 yards and another score.
Sean McVay delivered good news on Puka Nacua on Sunday. The Los Angeles Rams head coach said he expects the All-Pro wide receiver to play in Thursday's game against the San Francisco 49ers.
"Yeah, absolutely," McVay told reporters when asked about Nacua's status to face the Niners in Australia. "That's what I've heard. I haven't heard anything different."
Nacua has been managing psoas soreness and has been out since he suffered the injury during an August joint practice against the Dallas Cowboys. The Rams took a cautious approach with his workload throughout the remainder of training camp.
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