Chris Cooley Injury: Why Surgery on Broken Finger Opens Door for Fred Davis

According to John Keim’s Twitter feed, Washington Redskins tight end Chris Cooley will need surgery to repair his broken finger.

With Cooley out of the lineup for a good period of time, Fred Davis will need to take his chance and run with it.

He has done it this season with Cooley on the shelf, or limited with injuries, posting 16 receptions, 248 yards and one touchdown. Davis has proven he can play in the league so far. He has had three 80 or more yard performances in 2011.

Other than against the Dallas Cowboys, Davis caught at least four balls in every game this season. He caught 48 passes in 2009.

Davis has the ability of being a very productive tight end in the National Football League. He may not add up to Cooley, but he can be valuable.

He has some sort of numbers to look back upon to qualify him on being a sufficient backup to Cooley.

He can at least be healthy on the field, something that Cooley has struggled with in the past few seasons. He missed nine games in 2009.

Even though Cooley is 29-years-old, he has played 108 games in his career. He has been through a lot already in his tenure and he is reaching a point where his peak may or may not be in the present. The Redskins have to figure out if Davis can be trusted in the long term.

This is Davis’ time to shine. He is in his mid-20s, he has proved to be a valuable backup and he wants to prove that he can play regularly in the NFL.