The QB Matchups In The NFL This Week Are Absolutely Diabolical

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While injuries are a natural and regular part of any NFL season, this year seems to be particularly brutal when it comes to the quarterback position, as numerous starting QBs have gone down with significant injuries this season.

So far this year, the likes of Aaron Rodgers (New York Jets), Anthony Richardson (Indianapolis Colts), Kirk Cousins (Minnesota Vikings), Joe Burrow (Cincinnati Bengals), Daniel Jones (New York Giants), and Deshaun Watson (Hell) have been lost to season-ending injuries.

And based on how much pain Trevor Lawrence seemed to be in when he was knocked out of the Jacksonville Jaguars’ Monday Night Football loss to the Cincinnati Bengals, he’ll likely be next on that list.

Due to the bevy of both long and short-term injuries at the quarterback position right now, the QB matchups in Week 14 are looking pretty dire, which is the exact opposite of what the NFL wants during its final month of regular season games.

As pointed out by Michael Fabiano of Sports Illustrated, Week 14 could feature duels between Bailey Zappe and Mitch Trubiskym CJ Beathard and Joe Flacco, Gardner Minshew and J. Browning, Baker Mayfield and Desmond Ridder, Joshua Dobbs and Aidan O’Connell, Bryce Young and Jameis Winston.

Given that the quarterbacks are the lifeblood of the NFL’s product, it’ll be interesting to see if the owners attempted to implement any rule changes in the offseason to give players at the position greater protection.

After Tom Brady suffered from a torn ACL during Week 1 of the 2008 season, for example, the league implemented the “Brady Rule”, which outlawed defensive players from tackling QBs below the knees.

One thing the NFL could certainly do to cut down on injuries is to require all teams to play on grass instead of turf, which is something that the NFL players’ union has been pushing for.