Jamaal Charles suffered a gruesome non-contact injury in Sunday's week 5 matchup against the Chicago Bears. Charles went to make a cut as the Chiefs were threatening to score however his right leg gave out as his foot slip on the turf.
Charles managed to propel himself forward with his left leg but the damage appeared to have been done. Charles immediately grabbed his right knee and the reactions on the field were obvious. Even Bears players were seen concerned as Charles was helped off the field. Charles was soon carted off the field as his face showed nothing but anguish and pain.
Losing Jamaal Charles would be a devastating blow for a Chiefs team that is struggling to find their identity early in the 2015 season. The preliminary reports are that Charles indeed suffered a torn right ACL however the Chiefs are holding out hope for a sprain. In this injury plagued 2015 season the NFL has seen some of its biggest stars go down with career threatening injuries especially with torn or damaged ACLs or MCLs. Knee injuries have spiked because of an emphasis to hit low by the league to limit the number of concussions suffered by NFL players.
This has had unexpected outcomes including the rise of ACL and MCL injuries that have shortened players careers significantly. With Charles it is obvious that a non-contact injury is more severe especially with his injury history tearing his ACL in 2011. He sprained his ACL in 2012 which forced him out of action for some time. Another ACL tear would really make the Kansas City Chiefs concerned about his durability.
