How Long Will Jordan Reed Remain a Redskin?

The injury concerns surrounding Redskins tight end Jordan Reed are no secret. Either is the fact that when healthy, Reed is one of the best pass catching tight ends in the NFL.

This leaves the Redskins in a major conundrum.

In recent statements regarding player injuries, Gruden had this to say about his star tight end:

Yeah, the hardest thing with him is on Mondays and Tuesdays, we don’t know if he’s going to play or not and he’s a major part of any game plan. When he’s not in, you kind of have to adjust your game plan again, so that’s the most difficult challenge.

The big thing is getting him healthy. That’s all we care about.

But, it’d be nice to know on Monday if he’s going to play on Sunday because it factors into everything – red zone, short yardage, all your play-action passes. Your personnel groupings are affected, how many plays you carry in each personnel grouping have a major impact, so that’s the most difficult thing. Hopefully we’ll get great news tomorrow. If not, we’ll get him ready for the Giants or Cowboys or whatever it is.

So, as you can see, the questions surrounding Reed’s injuries week-to-week have an impact on how the team prepares for their opponents. Offensive coaches often have to adjust game plans when they learn of Reed’s weekly availability, and the concerning part here is, sometimes, they don’t know until later in the week if he will be part of that specific gameplan.

This is nothing new, as Reed has battled injuries throughout his NFL career.

Jordan Reed Injury History - from Sportsinjurypredictor.com.

Date: League: Injury Details:

Jul 21, 2017 NFL Pedal Toe Fracture Reed's injury has forced adjustment to the way he runs, per insider Ian Rapoport. Reed, however, wasn't listed on the Week 1 injury report.

Nov 25, 2016 NFL Shoulder A/C Joint Dislocation Reed apparently separated his shoulder during the game but still managed to catch 2 TDs.

Oct 9, 2016 NFL Head Cranial Concussion Grade 1 Reed entered the league's concussion protocol following his Week 5 game and was forced to miss Week 6 due to a Grade 1 concussion.

Nov 22, 2015 NFL Knee MCL Sprain Grade 2 Reed suffered a minor MCL sprain against the Panthers and was unaffected by the injury.

Oct 4, 2015 NFL Head Cranial Concussion Grade 1 After taking a big hit in his Week 4 matchup, Reed suffered a concussion along with a couple other injuries (MCL and ankle sprain). He was forced to miss the next two weeks of action.

Sep 17, 2015 NFL Leg Thigh Bruise Reed bruised his thigh in a practice after Week 1 but recovered by Week 2.

Aug 11, 2015 NFL Thigh Hamstring Sprain/Pull Unspecified Grade 1 During the preseason, Reed strained his hamstring and was forced to sit out for two games.

Aug 11, 2015 NFL Thigh Hamstring Strain Grade 2 During the preseason, Reed strained his hamstring and was forced to sit out for two games.

May 28, 2015 NFL Knee Strain Grade 1 Reed received a surgical "procedure" in May for his knee after straining his knee during the offseason.

Nov 16, 2014 NFL Thigh Hamstring Strain Grade 2 Reed pulled his hamstring in Week 11 and missed the following game.

Nov 16, 2014 NFL Thigh Hamstring Sprain/Pull Unspecified Grade 1 Reed pulled his hamstring in Week 11 and missed the following game.

Sep 7, 2014 NFL Thigh Hamstring Strain Grade 2 During the first quarter against the Texans, Reed pulled his hamstring and was sidelined for the next four games.

Sep 7, 2014 NFL Thigh Hamstring Sprain/Pull Unspecified Grade 1 During the first quarter against the Texans, Reed pulled his hamstring and was sidelined for the next four games.

Aug 23, 2014 NFL Hand Thumb Dislocation Reed suffered a dislocated thumb during the offseason but was unaffected by the injury.

Nov 17, 2013 NFL Head Cranial Concussion Grade 3 Reed suffered a concussion in Week 9 but hid the symptoms in an effort not to lose out on any playing time. He was concussed again 2 weeks later and placed on the IR forcing him to miss the last 6 games of the year.

Sep 22, 2013 NFL Leg Thigh Bruise Reed suffered a quad contusion and was sidelined for the following week.

Sep 22, 2012 Non-NFL Head Cranial Concussion Grade 1 Reed suffered a "minor" concussion and wasn't forced to miss any games as a result.

Oct 15, 2011 Non-NFL Head Cranial Concussion Grade 1 In college, Reed suffered a concussion but wasn't forced to miss any games because of it.

Sep 10, 2011 Non-NFL Thigh Hamstring Sprain/Pull Unspecified Grade 1 Reed missed two games at UF because of a hamstring pull.

According to Sports Injury Predictor, Jordan Reed’s preseason injury predictions were the following:

Chance of injury in 2017: 88.2%

Chance of injury per game: 12.5%

Projected games missed in 2017: 6.6

Reed has never completed a full NFL season since entering the league in 2013. Over his first four seasons, he’s played in 46 of his teams 64 regular season games, averaging 11 games played per season. This season, he’s already missed 3 ¹⁄₂ games, and looks to be out again this week against the Saints after suffering yet another setback in his rehab.

Aside from these games missed, Reed hid a concussion from the staff in 2013 in order not to lose any playing time. Two weeks later, he suffered another concussion and was placed on season-ending IR, forcing him to miss the team’s final six games.

Take injury out of the picture, and Reed is a great tight end... but he’s no where near a complete player. For as good as he is catching the football, he’s equally as poor blocking, and is often called for penalties due to poor technique. This hinders the team’s ability to effectively move the ball on the ground when he is in the game, and can tip defenses as the probability of a pass exists even when he’s in-line.

Overall, the 27 year old former Pro Bowler has tremendous potential as a mismatch joker tight end, but how much longer will he want to continue abusing his body? Will Reed finally say that the injuries, especially the multiple concussions, are enough, and look to hang up the cleats? Will the Redskins try and draft his replacement in the near future knowing he can’t be counted on for a full season? Should the Redskins look to trade the talented yet injury-prone pass catcher this offseason? If so, what type of value could they expect to get in return?