Los Angeles Rams linebacker Clay Matthews was able to make his return against the Pittsburgh Steelers in Week 10 after suffering a broken jaw in Week 5 against the Seattle Seahawks.
Matthews had been in the midst of a stellar start to the 2019 NFL season before he was sidelined for four weeks while making his recovery. Although the Rams were planning on taking a cautious approach with his injury, his participation in practice heading into Week 10 allowed him to make the trip to Pittsburgh to resume his integral role on defense.
The veteran managed to pick up right where he left off before the injury with three tackles and 1.5 sacks in the 17-12 loss to the Steelers. Despite coming up short, it seems the Matthews is just happy to get back on the field.
While he admits it took him some time to find his footing, Matthews was happy to be back out there with his teammates, via Gary Klein of the L.A. Times:
“I was a little rusty at first, but getting banged around a few times, you just make sure your jaw’s still attached,” he joked. “For the most part it went all right.
“When you take four weeks off and try to come back, there’s going to be some bumps and bruises.”
Matthews’ comments are certainly understandable considering he had spent most of his time recovering with his mouth wired shut prior to making his return and noted that the dietary restrictions had caused him to lose a few pounds. Fortunately, he was still able to make his presence felt during another strong outing from the defense.
Matthews had been the primary beneficiary of the attention that defensive tackle Aaron Donald was garnering from opposing offensive linemen with 6.0 sacks before the injury. That fact that he still managed to be productive in his first game back is undoubtedly an encouraging sign for his health moving forward.
There is no question that the defense has managed to perform at a high level despite having to deal with a rash of injuries and some significant changes to their personnel throughout the course of the 2019 campaign. Regardless, having Matthews back will provide a much-needed boost since Los Angeles now essentially find themselves in a must-win situation from here on out.
Unfortunately, it remains to be seen whether or not the offense can get back on track with back-to-back primetime matchups at home in the coming weeks.
