Guice’s health for Washington is still unclear

ASHBURN, Va. — Washington running back Derrius Guice is dealing with a knee injury, and while it remains unclear how long he will be out, it appears unlikely he’ll be able to play in Sunday’s home opener against the Cowboys.

One person with knowledge of the situation, who spoke on the condition of anonymity, said that the injury is to the meniscus in Guice’s right knee, and that the second-year runner could return to the team as early as next week, after the Cowboys game. Another person said the injury could keep Guice off the field for multiple weeks, as many as three to four games.

Coach Jay Gruden said Monday that Guice had an MRI exam Sunday after the game and another on Monday to look at “knee soreness,” and suggested that he could be back as early as the Dallas game. When asked if he had a chance to play against the Cowboys, Gruden responded, “For sure.”

Guice’s potential absence would add another layer to the team’s complicated running back situation, which was in the spotlight after Sunday’s season-opening loss at the Eagles. Guice started the game; Adrian Peterson, last year’s leading rusher, was held out as a healthy scratch for the first time in his career.

The news of Guice’s injury seemed to be a surprise to many in the organization after the running back took several hits in Sunday’s game and then moved around the locker room afterward as if everything were fine. Guice had gone into the sideline medical tent for a brief time during the second quarter Sunday but later said he simply needed a place to urinate. Gruden said Monday that Guice was actually being looked at by doctors when the back was inside the tent and that the doctors had cleared him to continue playing.

The injured knee is not the one doctors surgically repaired in the summer of 2018, after Guice tore the ACL in his left knee in the first preseason game, causing him to miss all of last season.