Pierre Thomas Placed on Injured Reserve
Pierre Thomas
pierre thomas place injured reserve
<m> Pierre Thomas </m> Placed on Injured Reserve
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<m> Pierre Thomas </m> Placed on Injured Reserve
Jan 5 , 2011 – 4 : 35 PM
Pierre Thomas , the Saints' leading rusher in 2009 , was put on injured reserve , the team announced Wednesday .
Thomas has an ankle injury , and he is the second running back in two days to be placed on IR as New Orleans prepares for its wild - card round playoff game at Seattle .
The Saints placed rookie Chris Ivory on injured reserve Tuesday - - another huge blow , because he was the club's leading rusher this season .
That leaves Reggie Bush , Julius Jones and the newly - signed Joique Bell , who was added off the Eagles' practice squad when Thomas was placed on IR , to carry the load in the Saints' backfield .
The Saints do not generally run the ball much anyway - - New Orleans finished 30th in the NFL in rushing attempts this season , with 380 .
They do , however , use their running backs frequently out of the backfield in the short passing game , and Thomas' absence will hurt there .
Ivory , who had made strides with ball security , showed off his power this season , running through arm tackles and over lighter linebackers en route to 716 yards rushing .
Thomas was hurt in the Saints' game vs . Atlanta game in September and missed 10 games , including last Sunday's loss to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers .
He had just 269 yards rushing .
New Orleans has never used Reggie Bush as a feature - type back , but as more of a third - down , all - purpose running back .
It is likely he will get 10 to 12 carries on Saturday .
The Saints are not likely to expose him to more than that , not with the depth being in such critical shape .
There was good news for New Orleans : Wide receiver Marques Colston was a full participant in practice on Wednesday .
He did not play last Sunday after undergoing arthroscopic knee surgery last Tuesday .
Safety Malcolm Jenkins ( knee ) , tight end Jimmy Graham ( ankle ) , defensive tackle Anthony Hargrove ( knee ) and linebacker Danny Clark ( hamstring ) did not participate in team drills Wednesday .
It is not certain what their status is for Saturday .
Tight end Jeremy Shockey ( groin ) and tight end David Thomas ( knee ) were limited in Wednesday's practice , which is encouraging because of Graham's ankle injury .