MITCHELL BLAIR
Riderville.com
Quarterback Darian Durant hasn’t been battered around on the football field by opposition defensive ends and linebackers, but he has been beaten up by his own team.
Earlier this year, Durant suffered a thumb injury when he slammed it on the helmet of a teammate during a drill and on Tuesday, he was forced to leave practice again after being kicked in the shin by someone. The latest injury has the word questionable attached to Durant’s status for Saturday’s rematch against the Toronto Argonauts, but he is saying he’ll be ready.
“It was pretty painful,” Durant told reporters Wednesday afternoon following practice. “I’m just resting it up right now. I feel a little bit better than I did yesterday (Tuesday). We’ll give it a shot tomorrow (Thursday) and we’ll see how it feels.’’
Head Coach Ken Miller didn’t think the injury would prevent Durant from being his starting quarterback Saturday afternoon, but while he still believes that will happen, he’s not as confident now.
“I was really optimistic yesterday.” Miller said. “I think today I’d downgrade that to cautiously optimistic. He has some soreness in his leg. One of his strengths as a quarterback is his ability to move around in the pocket. He needs to be able to move in and out of the pocket when he wants to. Not having that mobility makes him less effective and makes him more of a target for opposing rushers and that sort of thing.”
Miller adds mobility is the key word when it comes to deciding if Durant will suit up Saturday.
“I will need to see that from him tomorrow,” Miller states. “If he’s able to demonstrate that he’s able to run around without limping and without pain and that sort of thing, that would be a good first indicator.”
Its been a rough season for the North Carolina product. Besides battling a thumb injury and this one, he also battled through a stomach ailment that left him less than 100 percent. He says while its been a good season on the field when it comes to production, its been one to forget when it comes to his health.
“It has been pretty painful,” admitted Durant. “I’ve been going through a couple of injuries here and there — little nicks and knacks, but thankfully there has been nothing serious. I learned last year, starting 18 games, that there were definitely going to be some bumps and bruises. It’s all about how you take care of your body and how you treat those injuries. We have a great training staff. They’ll do what they have to do to make sure I’m okay.”
If Durant is unable to go Saturday, it would mean Ryan Dinwiddie would get the start. Miller is confident the offence can move the way it has been over the past couple of weeks with Dinwiddie calling the plays.
“I was relieved to see Ryan step in the last two days and run the first team offence,” Miller said. “He operated our offence exceptionally well both days — I thought even better today than yesterday. If need be, he’ll be ready if we call on him.’’