During a week of unpredictability, the Rams found some consistency on their injury report. As they stated on Thursday, Rob Havenstein was a limited participant, something that will carry through until gameday and Hunter Long was a full participant as both men are expected to play against the Vikings.
Havenstein is a tricky case. Going back to the initial reports of his injury, Havenstein suffered a shoulder injury on the Wednesday before the Rams were to face the Cardinals on Saturday during their week 18 matchup.
Havenstein did not practice that Thursday nor did he practice the following week despite Sean McVay stating Havenstein would be good to go if needed against Seattle.
On the Sunday after the Rams victory over Arizona, McVay said this about Havenstein's injury.
"That shoulder is such a finicky thing and it's such an important part of being able to control those blocks. It was such a freak thing that happened in practice. We don't have any padded practices left unless we're fortunate enough to earn the opportunity to get in [to the playoffs] so it was one of those just awkward collisions. It didn't look like much, but when you look at the scan there was something there that said there was a strain, and you want to be smart with that. He's going to do everything in his power to be ready to roll and he was certainly missed last night."
That will be something to keep an eye on, especially if Minnesota brings heavy pressure from the right side in an attempt to challenge Havenstein early. Havenstein is set to go up against Pro Bowler Andrew Van Ginkle.
McVay stated on Monday about Havenstein's rehab process, “Yeah, he’s been great. He’s done really well. There would've been a possibility that he would've played yesterday, depending upon the circumstances. I was talking to [VP, Sports Medicine and Performance] Reggie [Scott] about it this morning. He’s made great progress. You want to make sure that you don't leave yourself susceptible throughout the course of the week in practice to any sort of setbacks while also making sure that you get it tested accordingly. Those will be things that we'll be cognizant of. I know he’s really champing at the bit ready to go, ready to help lead and do his thing and play the way that he's capable of. I thought it was a good performance by both Warren [McClendon Jr.] and Joe [Noteboom] yesterday. We are expecting Rob back and we're excited about that.”
Hunter Long picked up an injury to his quad against Seattle that ended his day early. It looks like there are no concerns with him entering Wild Card Weekend.
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This article was originally published on www.si.com/nfl/rams/ as BREAKING: Rams Release Friday's Injury Report.