Despite a bum thumb, hope remains that Detroit Lions quarterback Matthew Stafford will start Sunday against the Carolina Panthers.
Stafford has a partial tear in a ligament in his right-handed thumb, NFL Network's Tom Pelissero reported Tuesday, per a source.
While the Lions will take the week to see how Stafford throws the ball, the quarterback often regarded for his toughness is expected to start, Pelissero added.
Facing the Lions and likely Stafford, the Panthers are also trending toward having their injured quarterback Teddy Bridgewater (knee), as well.
The thumb injury looked to have come to be Sunday against Washington on a sack by defenderKevin Pierre-Louis that was nullified by a penalty. Stafford taped up his thumb and continued playing.
Plagued by a back injury last season, Stafford had a streak of 136 consecutive starts snapped in 2019. So far in 2020, Stafford, who is coming off a three-touchdown showing against Washington, has 2,403 yards passing, has completed 198-of-311 passes (63.7%) and tallied 17 touchdowns to seven interceptions.
