Tampa Bay Buccaneers' RB Ronald Jones 'May Have Fractured' His Pinkie Sunday
Tampa Bay Buccaneers' running back Ronald Jones "may have fractured" his pinkie finger during Sunday's 26-14 win over the Minnesota Vikings, head coach Bruce Arians told local media Monday.
“We’re waiting to see. RoJo (Ronald Jones) may have fractured a pinkie, so we will wait and see," Arians said if the Bucs suffered any injuries during Sunday’s game. "It happened earlier in the game [and] he went back and played with it."
It's not clear exactly when Jones suffered the injury, but it appears it may have happened right before halftime. With 48 seconds left in the first half, Jones dove over the defensive line of the Vikings scoring his only touchdown of the game. After the play, Jones was seen on the sideline with his left glove off taking a look at his left pinkie finger.
While Jones did eventually return to the game, Bucs' veteran running back LeSean McCoy was used as the primary back on the opening drive of the second half.
“That’s something that we’ll evaluate each week and see what the best 47[-man active roster] it is for that ballgame to win," Arians said when asked if McCoy will continue to be utilized throughout the final three games of the regular season.
McCoy rushed for 32 yards on just four carries, while Jones led the Bucs with 80 yards on 18 carries, including a 16-yard rush in the third quarter following the hand injury.
If Jones is able to practice this week, even in a limited capacity, and eventually play Sunday on the road against the Atlanta Falcons, he wouldn't be the first Bucs' skill player to play with a fractured or broken finger.
Tampa Bay wide receiver Chris Godwin broke his index finger earlier in the season and continued to play with pins in it for multiple weeks. Just last week, Godwin had the pins removed once his finger healed.
It remains to be seen whether or not Jones will need to undergo a similar procedure and if he will miss anytime or not.
"Whether they have to put a pin in it or not, we have to wait and see," Arians said. "I don’t know what that will do. Chris [Godwin] played through it and we’ll see what happens with him. I think that’s about it as far as anything that could be major.”
Tampa Bay is set to travel this week to take on the Falcons on Sunday at 1 p.m.
