It’s been seven weeks since the New Orleans Saints defense last hit the field with maybe its best player. Marshon Lattimore suffered a lacerated kidney and two broken ribs in a collision with other players way back in Week 5, and those slow-to-heal injuries have kept him out of action for longer than anyone expected.
Lattimore practiced on a limited basis last week but wasn’t cleared to suit up against the San Francisco 49ers; he’s still not practicing fully ahead of Week 13’s game with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, and Saints head coach Dennis Allen offered scant details when asked about his status.
“He’s been limited all week so we’ll see where he’s at as we, you know, finish out the week,” Allen told local media Saturday. “But he’s been limited.”
There isn’t much you can do about internal organ injuries like this, either in preparing for it or treating it. If surgery isn’t an option then resting and waiting it out is the only path forward. Lattimore is officially listed as questionable on the Week 13 injury report, but he was questionable last week, too, so stay tuned for an update.