Antonio Gates was wheeling around Wednesday on a scooter that kept his right foot off the ground which is the opposite foot from the toe and ankle injuries that's been bothering him the past two weeks.
Last Sunday's game against the Titans, Gates popped the plantar fascia in his right foot. Plantar fasciitis is the same injury he sought a medical opinion in May, but it had not bothered him this season until he attempted to compensate for the injuries around his left foot in the Patriots game.
The breaking of the plantar fascia actually allows for healing, eliminating the tightness with which Gates had to play against Tennessee. The plantar fascia is a band that runs from the heel to the toes and works with the arch of the foot when the foot pushes off. The tearing is extremely painful.
On Monday, Gates had to be driven to his car in a cart because he couldn’t walk.
Dr. Phillip Kwong, a foot specialist with the Kerlan-Jobe Orthopaedic Clinic, said people find it difficult to walk for two weeks or more after tearing a plantar fascia.
Gates has been able to play in relative comfort with pain killing injections, but the hurt is almost intolerable when those wear off. He described the scooter and other measures he is going through as giving him “a chance” to face the Texans.
With a bye week after the Texans game, maybe it's wise not to play him this week so he can have 2 weeks to heal. I would rather lose him for one game than lose him for the rest of the season. Besides, the Texans have the worst pass defense in the league, let's just hope some of the backups can step up and not make mistakes like them have in previous games.
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