Seattle Seahawks rookie running back Chris Carson was one of several players who suffered an injury during yesterday's NFL action. Carson, who has been Seattle's starting running back over the first four games, suffered what coach Pete Carroll called a significant ankle injury during Sunday night's 46-18 win over the Indianapolis Colts.
Carson was carted off the field late in the fourth quarter and his left leg was placed in an air cast, following this hit.
After the game, Seahawks cornerback Richard Sherman was asked how players are affected when a teammate is injured, and he opened up about fantasy football and how fans now "look at player even less like people."
Per ESPN,
"I think a lot of people, a lot of fans out there have looked at players even less like people because of fantasy football and things like that," Sherman said. "You go and say, 'Oh man, this guy got hurt.'
"You're not thinking, 'Hey man, this guy got hurt -- he's really physically hurt and he's going to take time to recover and it's probably going to affect his mental state and his physical state and now he has a long, rigorous rehab.' You're thinking, 'Oh, man, he's messing up my fantasy team.'"
"I think that's why you see the frustration from a lot of players saying they don't care about your fantasy team," he said. "They don't care about how it affects your fantasy team because these are real players, this is real life. This is real life and this is their real job and that's affecting their well-being.
"Now, your fantasy team may not win, and hey, guess what, you'll live the next day. This is their well-being. They may not ever get another shot. They may never get another down, another play. And I think that's why it's so devastating for players. Thankfully, I don't think [Carson's injury is] as serious as we first thought, hopefully, God willing. Trying to be optimistic in this situation."
Carson wasn't the only significant player injured during Week 4.
The Minnesota Vikings fear rookie running back Dalvin Cook tore his ACL during yesterday's loss to the Lions and will be out for the year. Oakland Raiders QB Derek Carr went down with back spasms, Tennessee Titans QB Marcus Mariota left the game due to a hamstring injury and Falcons wide receiver Julio Jones suffered a hip flexor injury, though he's expected to return to the lineup after the team's bye week.