Falcons guard Andy Levitre left the Falcons game vs. the Vikings on Sunday and wasn’t able to return due to a partially torn triceps. Now with a quick turnaround for the team’s Thursday night affair against the Saints, Levitre will not be able to suit up in Atlanta’s Week 14 contest, according to Ian Rapoport of NFL.com (Twitter link).
However, Rapoport does clarify that a source tells him the injury is not a season ender. The team is hopeful that the lineman could return after just “2-3 weeks”.
Levitre, 31, has been one of the better guards in the league since he entered the NFL as a second round pick by the Bills in 2009. Even as he gets older, Levitre still ranks as a top 20 guard in football this year, according to Pro Football Focus. He grades out similarly in terms of run and pass blocking, so there’s not one area he shows great weakness or strength in so far in 2017.
Backup lineman Ben Garland came into replace Levitre in yesterday’s game, so you can expect him to get the first crack as the starting left guard on Thursday. The team also has Ty Sambrailo, Austin Pasztor and Sean Harlow on the bench for depth purposes.