A foot specialist diagnosed Redskins wide receiver Pierre Garcon with a plantar plate tear in his right foot Wednesday, the Washington Times reported. Garcon remains a week-to-week decision to play.
"We don't know what's going to happen with Pierre," Redskins coach Mike Shanahan said. "I'm taking this day by day, listen to the doctors, see what they recommend, and obviously I'm not going to force somebody to play if the doctors don't think he is ready or Pierre doesn't feel like he's ready."
The plantar plate is the soft tissue that connects the base of the toe and the metatarsal. It works as a shock absorber for the metatarsal head. The injury causes pain when Garcon runs and sprints.
Garcon's game revolves around his speed: He was the No. 1 deep threat for quarterback Robert Griffin III. He caught four balls for 109 yards, including an 88-yard touchdown, in the season opener. He has played in just two games since, with four receptions for 44 yards.
The Redskins are two weeks away from the bye, and it's hard to see Garcon being anywhere close to himself before then. Washington has hung tough with a 3-4 record and the No. 5 scoring offense despite Garcon's absence. The Redskins might want to put Garcon on the shelf for the next two games and then have him come back as healthy as possible after the bye.
UPDATE: Garcon said Thursday that "I don't want to have surgery" and that if he did have it, he'd probably be out for the rest of the season.
"But it could be a possibility if it doesn't heal right," Garcon said, via The Associated Press. "They have to go in there and fix the ligament, if it needs to be fixed."
Garcon also said a foot specialist told him Wednesday that he can play on the injury without possible further damage, "but it can feel worse."
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