Washington Redskins linebacker Zach Brown missed practice for a second straight day, and his status for Sunday’s game against the Arizona Cardinals is still up in the air.
Brown, who was spotted in a walking boot on Thursday, was again absent due to an illness and toe, Achilles and hip injuries.
Coach Jay Gruden said it “would probably be okay” for Brown to play, even if he’s only able to get on the field once during the week. But given the extent of Brown’s injuries, it’s unclear if that’ll happen.
“They’re hindering him quite a bit,” Gruden said of Brown, who recently underwent an MRI on his toe. The 28-year-old linebacker also has been dealing with the lingering Achilles injury throughout the season.
“Sickness is starting to clear up a little bit but he’s still a little sore,” Gruden said. “We’ll see if he makes any progress tomorrow. It’d have to be pretty significant, but we’ll have to wait and see.”
Defensive coordinator Greg Manusky acknowledged that Brown’s absence would be an obviously blow to the unit, but also stressed the next-man-up mantra.
“Definitely when you have got a guy like that, that is playing very well and then all of a sudden, he is hurt, it’s going to hurt us defensively,” Manusky said of Brown, who leads the team with 127 tackles. “But those backup players are going to play the best they can play.”
In other injury news, Cornerback Josh Norman (knee) was limited after getting a rest day on Wednesday. Offensive tackle Morgan Moses (ankle) also was limited, and defensive back Montae Nicholson still is in the concussion protocol.