NFL Injury Update: Ranking the Worst Losses Thus Far in 2011 Season

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Week 3 is almost over and the early season injuries have hit some teams hard.  With already top players at nearly every position out for the year or extended periods of time, many team's seasons are already in jeopardy.

Lets see what are the most devastating injuries around the National Football League so far in this young 2011 season.

10. Tony Moeaki

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After a bright rookie season, Tony Moeaki was looking to make a giant leap as a top NFL tight end in 2011.  An early knee injury ended these hopes though as he is now out for the season. 

Moeaki was a huge part of the Chiefs 2010 success, taking pressure off Dwayne Bowe in the passing game, and opening up big holes for Jamaal Charles and Thomas Jones in the running game. 

We all know that the Chiefs are now 0-3, and don't overlook the Moeaki injury as a major reason for their quick decline in success.

9. Marques Colston

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The high powered New Orleans Saints offense hasn't slowed much with the absence of Marques Colston.  Drew Brees is just so good, he can spread the ball around to anyone that is on the field.

None the less, Colston's injury is still huge for the Saints as they have a hole in their receiving corps as he has gained over 1,000 yards in four of the past five seasons, averaging over 70 yards a game for his career. 

We have yet to find out when he will return from his injured shoulder, but when he does return, that just makes the New Orleans offense extremely scary, but for now they are just scary.

8. Mikel LeShoure

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We don't know exactly what Mikel LeShoure's role was going to be for the Detroit Lions but after three weeks they only have 235 rushing yards.  I am sure that if they had LeShoure in the lineup, that total would be a lot higher.

The Lions, however, still have the fourth-highest scoring offense this season after three weeks, but without a running game this trend is sure to expire. 

It will be exciting to see LeShoure team up with Jahvid Best next year, but for now we will have to watch a struggling Lions running game.

7. Terrell Thomas

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Terrell Thomas had an amazing 2010 season, amassing 101 total tackles to go with five interceptions and one sack.  His season has been cut short already in 2011 though as he is on the IR with a torn ACL. 

So far they are 2-1 after a convincing victory over the Philadelphia Eagles. but as one of the many New York Giant injuries, we will see how they fair the rest of the season.

6. Michael Vick

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Michael Vick has taken a beating already this year and after a Week 2 concussion and Week 3 broken right hand, the Philadelphia Eagles are in trouble.  Mike Kafka is 0-2 in save opportunities and Vince Young is still recovering from a weak hamstring so it will be interesting to see where the Eagles go in Week 4.

Either way, this injury is devastating to the Eagles and Vick will not be the same for the rest of the year.  The injury is on his non-throwing hand but I'm sure it is not easy to play quarterback with one hand. 

If Vick continues to take the hits he has the Eagles and their "Dream Team's" season is surely going to turn into a nightmare, not that he's complaining or anything.

5. Eric Berry

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After a 2010 Pro Bowl rookie season, Eric Berry was looking to light up the NFL again.  His 2011 season lasted less than a whole game though and as a reoccurring theme, the Chiefs lost another player for the year. 

This loss is devastating to the Chiefs defense as he had 92 tackles last year along with two sacks four interceptions and one touchdown.  That hole is going to be a tough one to fill for Jon McGraw and for Kansas City, Eric Berry's knee cant heal fast enough.

The Chiefs will defense is sure to struggle with the high powered AFC West offenses and they will surely not repeat the success they had last year as they finished 10-6. 

4. Thomas Davis and Jon Beason

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Back-to-back weeks the Carolina Panthers lost starting linebackers for the season.  After Week 1, Pro Bowl linebacker Jon Beason went down with a torn Achilles, then in Week 2 Thomas Davis once again went down with a knee injury.  For Davis this is the third knee injury in three years. 

These two defensive captain's injuries are sure to change the dynamic of the Panthers team for the rest of the season and they are likely to struggle at linebacker all season. 

It is sure to be a struggle and Cam Newton will have to put up Rookie of the Year stats for Carolina to have any type of success this season.

3. Kenny Britt

Kenny Britt came out on fire this season.  After two weeks he was second in the league in receiving yards (271) and touchdowns (3) and was off to a nice start (3 catches for 18 yards) before going out with a nasty knee injury. 

On the play Britt got hit and fell awkwardly while fumbling away the ball.  That is never a good sign for any player and expecting the worse the Tennessee Titans fear he will be lost for the season with an ACL and MCL tear.

It is sad to see another year down the drain for Kenny Britt after his year was cut short last year as well.  He is an elite talent when given the chance, but it looks like we wont see him until next season. 

Kenny Britt is a game changer and now defensive coordinators will not have to plan for him and nobody can stretch the field for the Titans like Britt could.  The Titan passing attack actually still looked good after Britt left the game, but ultimately their offense will suffer because of the loss of that threat. 

2. Jamaal Charles

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After gaining 1467 yards on the ground last year, second to only Arian Foster, I was excited to watch Jamaal Charles tear up the field this year.  After a Week 2 knee injury, he is sadly now done for the year. 

The Chiefs, led by Charles, were the best in the league in rushing last year with 2627 yards (164 yards per game). However, in Week 3, the first full game without him, they only amassed 81 total rushing yards. 

As this trend is sure to continue, it is a huge blow to the Chiefs running game, their offense as a whole and their season.  For this reason, Jamaal Charles is the second largest loss to any team in the 2011 season.

1. Peyton Manning

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After nearly pulling off a Sunday Night Football victory over the Pittsburgh Steelers, the Indianapolis Colts problems may not be as big as they looked prior to the game, but none the less Peyton Manning is by far the biggest loss of any team so far in 2011.

Without Peyton Manning the Colts cannot run their true system.  Kerry Collins and Curtis Painter have struggled to get any Peyton Manning type passing plays done and the Colts offense has suffered. They are currently the sixth-worst passing team in the NFL with only 492 yards through three games.  Crazy.

It is idiotic to think that Indianapolis hasn't groomed a backup like so many other teams have. Just to name a few Brett Favre to Aaron Rodgers, Tom Brady to Matt Cassel, Donovan McNabb to Kevin Kolb or even Michael Vick to Matt Schaub.  The Colts have failed as an organization because of this and deserve to lose in my opinion.

So there ya go, the 10 worst losses to injuries so far in the young NFL season.