Ryan Fitzpatrick Needs Surgery On Left Thumb

MONDAY, 4:55pm: Fitzpatrick insinuated that he’ll be going under the knife on Friday, as Rich Cimini of ESPN.com tweets.

4:22pm: Coach Todd Bowles told reporters, including Manish Mehta of the Daily News (on Twitter) that Fitzpatrick could have surgery and he “may not be out” for the following game against the Texans. Bowles added that it is up to Fitzpatrick and the doctors as to when he has surgery (Twitter link via Brian Costello of the Post). The veteran could wait until after the season if he chooses to do so.

SUNDAY, 6:46pm: Ryan Fitzpatrick played well today after suffering a ligament injury in his non-throwing hand early in last week’s contest against the Raiders. However, it came out in the CBS production meeting that Fitzpatrick will require surgery on that thumb at some point before the end of the season, according to Brian Costello of the New York Post (via Twitter).

This revelation came as surprise to Jets fans, as well as Costello himself (via Twitter). Because the injury is on Fitzpatrick’s non-throwing hand and he was active this week, the expectation was that while his thumb might limit him, it would not cost him availability that would force Geno Smith back into the starting lineup.

Surgery could cause Fitzpatrick to miss time. CBS speculated that the veteran quarterback could elect to have the surgery on Friday, after a Thursday Night Football showdown with the Buffalo Bills (via Twitter). That would give him an extra few days to heal in time for a November 22nd game against the Houston Texans.

The exact quote from Fitzpatrick on whether or not he will have the surgery Friday is unclear, and Costello transcribes some of his words (via Twitter).

“Yes. I have to get surgery at some point,” said Fitzpatrick. “I don’t know. It’s still kind of up in the air.”

Costello spoke with David J. Chao M.D., who did not think Fitzpatrick would have to miss any games if he had the surgery on Friday making that an optimal date for the procedure (via Twitter). Chao reiterated that message in response to Manish Mehta of the New York Daily News, saying it would be a blow to the Jets if he had to have the surgery (via Twitter).

Smith might not get a chance to start and the Jets probably wouldn’t need to bring in a veteran backup if Fitzpatrick could avoid missing a game, but having surgery with such little recovery time is no sure thing.

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