Pats’ Hope Nothing More Than Ligament Strain For Lewis

Although the New England Patriots defeated the Washington Redskins, 27-10 on Sunday, they suffered a couple of tough injuries on the offensive side of the the football. While tackle Sebastian Vollmer's head injury might test the team's depth along the line for a week or two, the knee injury suffered by running back Dion Lewis is one that the team is hoping isn't as bad as it initially looked.

In the second half of the game, Lewis was injured attempting to run for a first down on a screen pass. Just as Lewis was getting tackled on the play he appeared to grab for his left knee. The problem there, is that the contact made by the tackler was up high, so the leg just gave way on its own. That typically means the player has torn a ligament, which would spell the end of Lewis' season.

While Lewis walked off the field on his own, which could be viewed as a good sign, he was ushered back to the locker room immediately and did not return to the game.

Even though things look bad, on initial reaction,  CBS Sports' Jason La Caforna said that after early test the Pats are hoping the injury is nothing worse than a sprained MCL.

If that's the case, that would be a huge win for the Patriots, as he would most likely be able to return at some point in the season. Of course the team will know much more tomorrow after Lewis has an MRI.

Until then, though, the Patriots should be hoping for the best and planning for the worst, which shouldn't be hard for them to do as they've long employed the "next man up" mantra under head coach Bill Belichick.