The Carolina Panthers might have to be a little touch-and-go on one of their big men.
Starting left guard Damien Lewis did not participate in Wednesday’s practice, the first ahead of Sunday’s Week 4 matchup against the Cincinnati Bengals, due to an elbow injury. Shortly after the injury report was released, head coach Dave Canales took the lectern and provided some details on Lewis’ status.
“He injured his UCL,” Canales told reporters this afternoon. “They did some assessment of that. They gave us a really broad window for that one. So, we’re trying to just push him and see what we can get out of him, see if we can get him back out there. But that’s kinda up in the air.”
Lewis, who signed a four-year, $53 million deal to join the Panthers this past spring, has given the team an early return on their investment. The 6-foot-3, 332-pounder currently boasts an 80.9 pass-blocking from Pro Football Focus, the sixth-highest amongst all guards this season.
If Lewis is unavailable this weekend, second-year lineman Chandler Zavala—who played 22 snaps in place of Lewis in Week 3’s 36-22 victory over the Las Vegas Raiders—would likely get the start.
