Steve Slaton Unlikely To Play Against Jacksonville This Sunday

It has been a pretty quiet week on the Texans front up until this point. But it appears that no news was bad news.

Running Back Steve Slaton is expected to miss Sunday’s game against Jacksonville because of numbness in his arms. The numbness is a result of a previously undisclosed shoulder injury. Coach Gary Kubiak did not completely rule out Slaton, but the fact he did not practice Friday makes it unlikely he will play. “It’s something he has been dealing with for awhile but it’s gotten worse in the last 24 hours,” Kubiak said.

What I don’t like about this is the term “Previously Undisclosed.” That is something that is pretty significant in the game of football. Numbness in arms and hands is a pretty good way to fumble the ball a lot…and we are talking about “Slippery” Steve here, who leads the league in fumbles.

It's been a rough sophomore effort for Steve Slaton. And it may have to get worse before it gets better.

Although Slaton has been bothered by the numbness for several weeks, coach Gary Kubiak said the condition had worsened in the last day or so and the decision was made to hold him out of practice Friday. Neither Kubiak nor Slaton himself would completely discount his chances of playing against the Jaguars, but it appears likely Chris Brown will get the start with Ryan Moats becoming the backup.

I’ll wait while you puke in a bucket…

Kubiak had this to say about the suffering RB: “It’s an issue. It’s something that’s been bothering Steve. We’ve been trying to work him through it, but it seems to have gotten worse in the course of the last 24 hours. We’ll see. We didn’t want him to take reps away from a guy like Ryan who might have to play a lot. With the things Steve has to do, trying to protect the ball, holding on to the ball, protecting the quarterback … it’s a concern.”

However, Slaton isn’t blaming his ball dropping issues this year on the injury. “No, I can’t say that had anything to do with it,” he said. “It’s just something that’s going to take some time. I’ll wait to Sunday and see how it feels. It’s a little scary, I guess, but I’ve talked to the doctors and they told me it would be fine.”

Looks like Matt Schaub is going to need a 400 yard day to have a chance in Jacksonville on Sunday…

Tags: Chris Brown, Gary Kubiak, Jacksonville Jaguars, Matt Schaub, Ryan Moats, Steve Slaton