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Los Angeles Rams CB Troy Hill broke his thumb in the Rams’ big loss to the Dallas Cowboys in Week 15. NFL Media’s Ian Rapoport is reporting Hill will have surgery today and potentially return in time for the Rams’ Week 16 game against the San Francisco 49ers:
#Rams CB Troy Hill, who broke his thumb in yesterday’s game, is having surgery to repair it today… with an eye toward playing Saturday vs the #49ers, source said. He emerged as a key defender midseason.
— Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet) December 16, 2019
First note dripping in relevance and timing. It’s nearly one year to the day that Rapoport reported that RB Todd Gurley was “on track to play” in Week 16 of the 2018 regular season, so perhaps Hill’s “eye toward playing” can be taken with at least a bit of skepticism.
Beyond that though, it’s an interesting situation given Hill’s inclusion, yet again, into the starting lineup. Two years ago, Hill came in for an injured Kayvon Webster starting in Week 15 and into the wild card playoff game against the Atlanta Falcons and played well throughout. Last season, Hill subbed in for Aqib Talib who missed eight games in the middle of the year with an ankle injury. Again, Hill played well through that stretch as the Rams went 7-1 in Talib’s absence. This year, Hill was yet again pressed into starting duties thanks to the mid-October trade flurry that sent Talib and CB Marcus Peters out while CB Jalen Ramsey came in.
In terms of the injury, here’s hoping Hill recovers quickly. Not sure he’s needed badly enough this Saturday to warrant pushing him in if it threatens worsening the thumb.
In terms of the outlook beyond 2019, it’s convoluted a bit. Hill signed a two-year deal in May, but the 2020 year is voidable if he didn’t meet some unspecified statistical thresholds. That might be part of Hill’s motivation to try and get on the field this weekend. But the depth chart is particularly interesting here given the lack of playing time beyond Hill.
The Rams were forced to go with CB Darious Williams against the Cowboys with rookie CB David Long, Jr., among the inactives. Those two are the only outside cornerbacks currently on the roster as CB Dont’e Deayon is more of a backup in the slot for CB Nickell Robey-Coleman. We’ll have to see if the Rams again go with Williams or if they opt for Long if Hill can’t go.
Here’s hoping for a speedy recovery.