Washington Injury Update: QB Ryan Fitzpatrick expected to miss rest of the season with hip injury

Heinicke/Allen show for 2021

Ryan Fitzpatrick,38, signed a 1-year, $10 million contract with Washington to be the team’s starter and he held that role until his first game with the team. He was injured during the second quarter, and didn’t return to the field. He suffered a hip subluxation, and was placed on injured reserve with an initial timetable of 6-8 weeks for a return. Fitzpatrick opted to not have surgery, he would try to rehab and rest the injury, and he hoped for a return this season.

That plan hasn’t worked and Fitzpatrick is likely done for the year. He had an MRI that has not shown sufficient improvement, and he is still dealing with swelling and pain in his hip and groin area. Head Coach Ron Rivera recently said that there wasn’t enough progress in his recovery to give a timeline for a return to the field. He mentioned Fitzpatrick was working out, throwing the football by himself, but not close to on the field work. We now know that any hopes of him returning this season were optimistic at best.

Fitzpatrick, who was injured in Week 1 and placed on injured reserve, is still dealing with swelling and pain in the hip and groin area, sources say. Based on his current status, he’s been focused on treatment, rather than rehab and working out to get back on the football field. That part of the process has yet to begin.

He has another MRI in a few weeks to check his progress. If that shows vast improvement, perhaps Fitzpatrick can begin working out again. But based on where his hip is, the belief is he won’t see the field again this year.

It has been the Taylor Heinicke show since Fitzpatrick went down, and Rivera has said he’s sticking with him until he has to make a change. The team is currently 2-6 and will face the defending Super Bowl Champion Tampa Bay Buccaneers in a rematch from last season’s home playoff game today. Heinicke made a name for himself in that game, and recently said that performance is probably why he’s still here. He might need to repeat that performance to keep backup Kyle Allen from getting a shot to start soon.