Aaron Hernandez Injury: Patriots TE is questionable Week 6

The Patriots passing game will need all of its weapons on Sunday, as they’ll face off against one of the stingiest pass defenses in the league. Seattle has allowed just 192 passing yards per game so far this season.

Hernandez left that game against Arizona after sustaining a high-ankle sprain in the the first quarter. High-ankle sprains are difficult injuries to deal with, and recovery time is hard to pin down.

The third-year starter out of Florida has been an important part of the offense since arriving in New England. He broke out last season, catching 79 passes for 910 yards and seven touchdowns. Hernandez’s performance earned him a six-year, $54 million contract extension from the Patriots over the offseason.

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Losing Hernandez is a big blow for the Patriots, as he was expected to be one of their main offensive weapons this season. He caught six passes for 59 yards and a touchdown in Week 1, but did not catch a pass before leaving the game on Sunday.

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Aaron Hernandez, New England Patriots (ankle)

The Patriots’ tight end, part of the team’s dynamic duo alongside Rob Gronkowski, suffered what has been preliminarily diagnosed as a right high ankle sprain. The term “high ankle sprain” is usually used to describe an injury to the syndesmotic ligaments of the ankle, which hold the lower ends of the tibia and fibula (lower leg bones) together. Injuries to these ligaments are usually more serious than to other areas of the ankle, causing significant pain and difficulty bearing weight. The severity of and prognosis for recovery for ankle sprains are often a source of confusion, primarily due to misunderstanding over what exactly the different “grades” of sprains actually mean. In brief:

Sources have told Pro Football Talk that Hernandez could miss up to six weeks with the injury.

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PFT’s Mike Florio has developed a well-earned reputation for running with a single, anonymous source and being burned with misinformation. But when the injury occurred, NFL.com’s Albert Breer reported it was a high-ankle sprain, which always have an indefinite, but long, timetable.

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New England Patriots tight end Aaron Hernandez suffered a right ankle injury against the Arizona Cardinals early in the game and did not return. The latest news on Hernandez’s ankle is that his injury is likely a high ankle sprain.

If this is high ankle sprain for Hernandez, it could sideline him for multiple weeks or even months. It all depends on just how severe the sprain is. This injury can be difficult to recover from as it requires a lot of rest, and once a player has a high ankle sprain, it is more likely that he could sprain that ankle again.

There is now some positive news, because after x-rays were taken it has been revealed that Hernandez’s right ankle is not broken. However, at this point any other damage to the ankle is not known, and further testing will be needed to see if there is any other damage to Hernandez’s ankle.

Before Hernandez left the game he was targeted just once, and they need him on the field because their passing offense has struggled against the Cardinals ever since he left the game.

Hernandez had to be taken off the field with the help of a pair of trainers and is being taken to the locker room for more evaluation. The injury appears to be quite serious since Hernandez was unable to put much weight on his right leg, and he is questionable to return to this game.

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