Michael Roos has started every single game for the Tennessee Titans since being drafted out of Eastern Washington University in the second round in 2005 – a streak now in peril of ending after 119 games, because even NFL players have to heal after emergency appendectomies.
On Monday, the left tackle had his appendix removed.
He played through discomfort in last week’s 35-34 win at Buffalo. When Roos returned home, he couldn’t sleep and at 4 a.m. headed to a hospital, where he met a team doctor. Roos watched practice Wednesday and Thursday and is being checked daily by a doctor before the Titans (3-4) play the Colts (3-3) on Sunday.
Roos said his streak, which is second among active offensive tackles to Jeff Backus of Detroit (181), is a source of pride.
“Always want to keep something like that going, but can’t do anything too disastrous to my health going forward,” said the 6-foot-7, 320-pound Roos, who is thought to be the first NFL player born in Estonia. “If it means sitting out a week or two to be ready for the rest of the season, that’s something I’ll have to do. We’ll just see each day.”
For now, the Titans are planning on Mike Otto, a lineman in his fifth NFL season, starting at left tackle in his first action in a game this season.
Titans quarterback Matt Hasselbeck said he would never count out Roos from what he’s seen of the left tackle, though nobody is pressuring him to play.
Hasselbeck, who was the Seattle Seahawks’ quarterback from 2001-2010, will make his fourth consecutive start with former University of Washington star Jake Locker still recovering from a shoulder injury.
EXTRA POINTS
Packers receiver Greg Jennings will have surgery Tuesday to repair a torn abdominal muscle that has kept him out for most of the season. He would not put a timetable on his return but said the procedure is not season-ending. … Rams receiver Danny Amendola is recovering faster than expected from a right shoulder injury, and he thinks there’s an “outside chance” he can play against the Patriots on Sunday. … Redskins linebacker London Fletcher was being evaluated by a neurologist for a possible head injury and missed practice for a second consecutive day, putting his streak of 231 consecutive games in doubt. … Jets linebacker Bart Scott’s streak of playing in 119 straight games could end Sunday because of a hyperextended big toe that has ailed him since the third game of the season. He missed his second day of practice Thursday. … Broncos cornerback Tracy Porter missed practice to see a doctor about symptoms he continues to experience following a seizure he suffered in August. He is hoping to get medical clearance to play Sunday against the Saints, his former team. … Redskins receiver Pierre Garon says he has a torn ligament on the bottom of his right foot, and he’s hoping to avoid surgery. He described the injury as a “plantar plate tear” near his second toe. … The $1.05 billion sale of the Browns to Jimmy Haslam was finalized. … The Jaguars placed linebacker Daryl Smith on injured reserve with a designation to return later this season. He sustained a groin injury in training camp.
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