Cleveland Browns: Keeping up with the ample amount of injuries

An injury-plagued Cleveland Browns team is on a short week this week and needs to get healthier ahead of a Thursday night showdown with the Denver Broncos.

The injury bug has continued to bite this Cleveland Browns team for weeks now.

After a catastrophe on Sunday evening in Cleveland against the Cardinals, the Browns will look to put the 37-14 loss behind themselves and focus on the Denver Broncos, who come to town for Thursday Night Football.

Here is an injury tracker for the key Browns players dealing with a variety of injuries heading into their shortened week.

Key injuries:

Quarterback Baker Mayfield landed awkwardly on his left shoulder in the third quarter and Cardinals defensive lineman J.J. Watt immediately knew Mayfield was in pain. After going back and forth from the medical tent to the sideline, Mayfield ended up returning to the game. Mayfield has been playing on a partially torn labrum that he suffered in Week 2 against the Houston Texans while trying to make a tackle after an interception.

Mayfield landed awkwardly on his shoulder and later revealed that his shoulder dislocated again. Mayfield also said “absolutely” when he was asked if he expects to play Thursday Night with an injured shoulder. The concern is if this injury will hinder his ability to make plays but is also something that we cannot answer without seeing him perform. Coach Kevin Stefanski confirmed that Mayfield will undergo an MRI on Monday.

Running back Kareem Hunt suffered a non-contact calf injury in the fourth quarter yesterday. Hunt appeared to be in a great deal of pain after going down and was unable to put any pressure on his right leg while being helped to the sideline with medical staff.

Hunt was then carted off of the field and underwent an MRI on Monday morning. The MRI later revealed that Hunt would miss around 4-6 weeks and would likely be placed on the injured reserve, NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport reported Monday. With Chubb out with a calf injury as well, third-string running back D’Ernest Johnson needs to be ready to go for Thursday Night in the likely scenario that Chubb, along with Hunt, are unable to play.

In addition to Mayfield, wide receiver Odell Beckham Jr also suffered a shoulder injury in Sunday’s loss to the Cardinals. Beckham ran off of the field in the second quarter after making a 17-yard catch. Beckham was taken into the injury tent and then to the locker room before halftime.

The Browns then announced that Beckham Jr was questionable to return to the game with a shoulder injury. Beckham Jr then made his return to the field in the third quarter and racked up a 24-yard catch shortly after. Beckham Jr will likely be able to suit up and play Thursday with the shoulder injury, but it is definitely a developing situation to continue to monitor.

Jarvis Landry (knee) could also potentially return to action on Thursday after being designated to return from the injured reserve on Friday.

Offensive tackles Jedrick Wills Jr and Jack Conklin did not play yesterday in the team’s loss to Arizona and their status remains in doubt for Thursday night. Wills has been dealing with an ankle injury since the first week of the season and Conklin missed yesterday with a knee injury. If both tackles are unable to play on Thursday, we will likely see Blake Hance fill in on the left side and rookie James Hudson on the right.

Linebacker Jeremiah Owusu-Koramoah suffered an ankle injury in the fourth quarter and an MRI revealed on Monday that suffered a significant injury and he would miss approximately 4-6 weeks with a high-ankle sprain.

Owusu-Koramoah has been one of the defense’s only bright spots and has earned a PFF grade of 85.3 through the first six weeks of the season. The Browns linebacking room will have the next man-up mentality as they prepare for Owusu-Koramoah to be sidelined for at least a month.

The Browns are yet to be at full strength this season and it looks like Browns fans are going to need to wait for a pretty long time to do so.