The Los Angeles Rams were expecting to get both Myles Garrett and Terrance Ferguson back from injured reserve last week against the Washington Commanders. They both returned to practice and were tracking to play.
Then Friday’s practice happened. Ferguson pulled his hamstring while running a route and was promptly ruled out by the team.
After recovering from an ankle injury, Ferguson will now miss “another couple weeks” with a hamstring strain. The problem is, he’s still on injured reserve and the Rams already started his 21-day clock.
That clock will run out on Nov. 25, three weeks from when the Rams opened his practice window on Nov. 4. By rule, if a player isn’t activated within those 21 days, he must remain on IR for the rest of the season.
While the Rams expect Ferguson to return this season, Sean McVay couldn’t say with 100% certainty that the tight end will be back because of the timing with his return clock starting last week.
“That’s hopefully something that we want to avoid,” McVay said on the “Coach McVay Show” of possibly shutting Ferguson down for the season. “I’m reluctant to get too far ahead of anything, just because – but yes, that is something we’d want to avoid if he’s not prepared. And if you’re holding him on the roster before he can play, if that time is sooner than later, that’s something worth exploring, without a doubt.”
With all the injuries the Rams have, they can’t exactly afford to activate someone who won’t contribute. Teams are limited to 10 IR activations per year, and they’ve already used three. Davante Adams, Kobie Turner and Puka Nacua will all need to be activated, too, as could Steve Avila and Jordan Whittington if they go on IR.
The Rams essentially have two more weeks to activate Ferguson, so they’re facing a scenario where they may have to activate him even if he’s not ready to play – which is what McVay was alluding to.
It’s a tricky situation, but there’s no doubt the Rams want Ferguson to return at some point this season, even if they have to activate him before he’s healthy.
“He was a guy that we had huge plans for going into this season, and I think he showed some real flashes of why we did and unfortunately, the injuries have prevented him,” McVay said. “But he’s got a really bright future. These are the moments that strengthen you, even though they don’t feel like they do when you’re in the midst of it. But he’s a resilient, mentally tough guy and we’ll be excited to get him back whenever that time comes.”
The Rams have one game left before their Week 11 bye, so Ferguson will have an extra week to recover without missing another game, which is good news for the Rams. But hopefully he’s ready to go when they return in Week 12 to face the Packers on Thanksgiving Eve – the day Ferguson’s 21-day clock runs out.
This article originally appeared on Rams Wire: Rams hope to avoid keeping Terrance Ferguson on IR for rest of season
