Washington Football Team defensive end Chase Young will miss the remainder of the season, head coach Ron Rivera said during his Monday press conference, after suffering a knee injury against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers
The injury occurred on with less than eight minutes left in the second quarter, as the Buccaneers' offense was driving at Washington's 11-yard line. Young left the game and did not return to action, although he did return to the sideline in street clothes for a brief period to witness Washington attempt to close out an eventual 29-19 win.
"He has surgery coming up and then his recovery," Rivera said. "We certainly do hope to have him here. We have a real good PT on staff that we feel very good with."
On a 3rd-and-2, Young's knee buckled while working against Donovan Smith, causing him to collapse. Young was in visible pain and was helped off the field by Washington's training staff.
The loss of Young is another blow dealt to Washington's defensive line. On the other side of the front, Montez Sweat is dealing with a jaw injury and is currently on Injured Reserve.
With both of Washington's most-recent first-round pick out, the team will need to rely on players like Casey Toohill and seventh-round pick Shaka Toney to fill the absences. While it's impossible to replace players with Young and Sweat's caliber, Rivera showed confidence in the team's younger options.
"I think the guys that we have, have enough athleticism to continue with the outside pressure," Rivera said. "They haven't really had a lot of opportunities, but when you watch the tape and you see some of the things, there's some pretty good efforts out there."
Washington's players also believe Toohill and Toney can handle the extra playing time. Toohill recorded four tackles against the Buccaneers, while Rivera said after the game that Toney has shown growth since the team drafted him.
"I have seen what they can do on the limited opportunities they have gotten," said defensive tackle Jonathan Allen. "Obviously, Chase Young is Chase Young, but I had no doubt they would be able to step up to the plate and play good football and that's what they did."
