Tennessee Titans' Mike Vrabel explains whether resting players vs. Cowboys is right choice
It's not a surprise when the storyline coming into a Tennessee Titans game is which players won't play. It's a little bit of a surprise when those players might not be playing by choice.
The Titans (7-8) host the Dallas Cowboys (11-4) in a mostly irrelevant penultimate game at Nissan Stadium on Thursday (7:25 p.m., NewsChannel 5, Amazon Prime Video). Whether the Titans win doesn't affect the team's playoff hopes, which hinge entirely on the outcome of the Titans' Week 18 game against the Jacksonville Jaguars.
The Titans have led the NFL in player games lost to injury this season and have a number of key contributors playing through injuries late in the year. It all has caused speculation about whether the Titans will healthy scratch some of those injured players Thursday to give them an extra week to heal for the Jaguars game, speculation Titans coach Mike Vrabel didn't shoo away after Saturday's loss to the Houston Texans.
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It wasn't until Monday that Vrabel explained how he'll evaluate which players could be in need of a rest.
"I think we’ll have to prepare this week and see where guys are on Wednesday and even Thursday before we ultimately make a decision and see who you feel like could have a setback or who could need some time," Vrabel said. "Those we’ll have to look at."
Vrabel didn't mention any specific candidates for players who might get a break, but that's not for lack of options. Quarterback Ryan Tannehill, linebacker Dylan Cole and defensive back Kristian Fulton missed Saturday's game with injuries but are still on the active roster. Offensive linemen Aaron Brewer and Nicholas Petit-Frere started despite both being listed as questionable Saturday. Petit-Frere left the game with a re-aggravated injury, as did linebacker Zach Cunningham. Defensive tackle Jeffery Simmons has been limited in practice with an ankle injury since October but only missed one game.
Tannehill isn't expected to play this week, but Vrabel said the veteran is "doing everything he possibly can" to return, hence not landing on injured reserve. The Titans only get one more injured reserve activation this season, and Vrabel didn't hint at who might get the elevation, though he said receiver Kyle Philips and linebacker David Long Jr., are not candidates to return for Thursday.
A number of players, most notably safety Kevin Byard, have said they want to play Saturday rather than concede to the Cowboys and wait for the Jaguars. But Byard is one of the lucky few Titans who hasn't missed a game to injury or spent months bouncing on and off the injury report. For those in more difficult situations, Vrabel said conversations will need to be had.
"I’m confident they’re all working extremely hard to get back," Vrabel said. "It’s just this time of year we need everybody that we can get and then we’ll monitor the injuries coming out of the game, seeing how guys feel and try to make the best decision for the team."
Nick Suss is the Titans beat writer for The Tennessean. Contact Nick at nsuss@gannett.com. Follow Nick on Twitter @nicksuss.
This article originally appeared on Nashville Tennessean: How Mike Vrabel will decide if Tennessee Titans should rest vs Cowboys
