Ohio.com - Injury bug takes bite out of Browns
excerpt:
BEREA: The Browns had tough injury news to report Thursday.
Linebacker Willie McGinest had back surgery and will be sidelined the next six weeks.
Backup linebacker Matt Stewart had shoulder surgery to repair a torn labrum and will be out for the season.
And guard Eric Steinbach is out three to four weeks with a sprained ligament in his knee.
Coach Romeo Crennel was most optimistic about Steinbach, but he did not guarantee the team's top free-agent signing would be back for the opener against Pittsburgh on Sept. 9.
''I'm not exactly sure how long it's going to be,'' Crennel said. ''But they feel like he should be able to be back in time for the regular season.''
Steinbach hurt the knee in Tuesday's practice when he fell on it. He walked off under his own power, but was not even on the field for Thursday's practice.
Sprained posterior cruciate ligaments always involve some sort of tear, but the length of time missed depends on the severity of the injury, with three to six weeks a range for missed time. Steinbach was not wearing a brace, which is probably a positive sign.
''I expect that he will make a full recovery and he will come back and be the productive player (that) I know that he is and I know he can be and I expect him to be,'' Crennel said.
Treatment involves rest and strengthening of the area around the knee.
The injury will affect the offensive line's cohesion. Already, the team has had to adjust to the four-game suspension of Ryan Tucker by moving tackle Kevin Shaffer to the right side.
Lennie Friedman took the practice reps with the starters with Steinbach out.
''There's no question in a perfect situation every coach in the world would love the starting five to be there the whole year,'' Friedman said. ''But that's not how football works.''
McGinest will start rehab in a week and probably miss six weeks, Crennel said. If he does, he would miss the first two games against Pittsburgh and Cincinnati.
''He's going to come back and we're going to try to get him ready to play the remainder of the season,'' Crennel said. ''Now, backs are backs and they are fickle sometimes, but I think that probably after the first six weeks we'll see how the rehab is going and we'll see how soon he will be back.''