Oakland Raiders Left Tackle Donald Penn to Miss Last Two Games of the Season Due to Foot Injury
With two games remaining in the 2017 season, the Oakland Raiders' chances of earning a wild-card berth in the American Football Conference (AFC) are pretty slim right now.
Winning their final two games on the road against the Philadelphia Eagles and the Los Angeles Chargers won't be easy. But the task has become even more difficult because they will have to find a way to win those games without veteran left tackle Donald Penn.
The two-time Pro Bowler limped off the field in the first quarter of Sunday's matchup against the Dallas Cowboys with a foot injury, and on Monday, Raiders head coach Jack Del Rio confirmed that Penn was scheduled to undergo foot surgery on Wednesday and he has been ruled out of the rest of the season.
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The injury will snap his streak of 170 consecutive regular-season starts.
Penn's injury is a massive blow to the team's already slim playoff hopes. In his absence, rookie David Sharpe is expected to see some action at left tackle when they take on the Eagles on Monday.
"We'll see how the week goes, but that's why he [Sharpe] is here, and then, obviously, the way we finished the game the other night is an option," Penn said on Monday, via the Raiders' official website.
"We have some work to do through the week of practice. We'll see how guys prepare, and how they work, and Coach Tice, obviously, and I will talk about that, and [Offensive Coordinator] Todd [Downing], and kind of work through it, and make the decision that's best for us," he continued.
Of course, the Raiders may opt to move Marshall Newhouse from right tackle to left tackle if they don't want to start Penn. Newhouse moved to left tackle after Penn got hurt in Sunday's game while Vadal Alexander came in to fill Newhouse's spot.
