2010 NFL Injured Reserve Report

'Injured reserve' or more appropriately the injured reserve list is a place where seriously injured players go when they are so seriously injured they require surgery and then rehabilitation. The availability of the injured reserve option for NFL teams allows them to remove the seriously injured players from the active roster...in other words they can have a healthy player take the place of an injured player. NFL teams have a set number of roster spots and of course they need healthy players filling these spots.

NFL players are stronger and faster than average people to begin with and they have surgery and rehab from upper body injuries to joints: wrists, shoulders, and fingers. Lower body injuries by my estimation are more career-threatening-- though I don't have archival statistics to validate it-- because football players are valuable according to their mobility...in other words they don't run on their hands. Hand injuries to defensive players can be dealt with...offensive skill position players such as quarterbacks, running backs, tight ends, and wide receivers, though, have an obvious need to use their hands when handling the football so upper body injuries to them are more problematic.

Many players go to the injured reserve list and then have surgery and return the next season following rehabilitation during the off season. Concussions, however, can be career threatening for any NFL player.

The NFL on November 12, 2010 has 163 players on IR. Some of the injuries are career ending such as one player who had recurring concussions due to an apparently serious concussion. Some players are put on the injured reserve list with unspecified injuries.

As I researched this story I noticed that most players who are on injured reserve are put on the list in September.

To see how your favorite team has dealt with injuries and how they might do this week go to my week 16 predictions story HERE.

Here are the number of players each NFL team has placed on the injured reserve list during the 2010 NFL season:

Arizona Cardinals...2

Atlanta Falcons...3

Baltimore Ravens...5

Buffalo Bills...4

Carolina Panthers...9

Chicago Bears...2

Cincinnati Bengals...3

Cleveland Browns...8

Dallas Cowboys...4

Denver Broncos...3

Detroit Lions...5

Green Bay Packers...10

Houston Texans...9

Indianapolis Colts...8

Jacksonville Jaguars...9

Kansas City Chiefs...5

Miami Dolphins...6

Minnesota Vikings...2

New England Patriots...9

New Orleans Saints...4

New York Giants...7

New York Jets...2

Oakland Raiders...2

Philadelphia Eagles...5

Pittsburgh Steelers...4

San Diego Chargers...7

San Francisco 49ers...3

St Louis Cardinals...8

Seattle Seahawks...5

Tampa Bay Buccaneers...3

Tennessee Titans...3

Washington Redskins...4

I added up the numbers and it came to 163 players on injured reserve in a league of 32 teams which comes out to about five players from each NFL team on average have gone on injured reserve in 2010. The Green Bay Packers are the best at this bad statistic having placed ten players there with New England, Jacksonville, and Houston following close behind with nine each on the notorious list...Indianapolis has eight players on the list in 2010. Except for Jacksonville and Houston all these teams have good records and have a good shot at making the playoffs. The teams who have placed the fewest number of players on injured reserve this year are Arizona, Chicago, Minnesota, and Oakland...each of these teams has placed two players on the injured reserved list this year

Resources:
www.nfl.com...Accessed 11/12/2010
www.newsday.sportsdirectinc.com...Accessed 11/12/2010