Steelers' Blake Martinez: Will have bigger role Sunday
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With Elandon Roberts (pectoral) ruled out for Sunday's Week 17 game against the Seahawks, coach Mike Tomlin said Martinez would likely get to play, Gerry Dulac of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette reports.
The veteran linebacker has been inactive four of the last five games and has played just 21 defensive snaps this season. Cole Holcomb, Kwon Alexander and Chapelle Russell are on injured reserve, forcing Pittsburgh to dig deep into its linebacker reserves. Mykal Walker and Myles Jack finished Week 16 as the Steelers' linebackers.
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Blake Martinez: Works out with Carolina
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Martinez worked out with the Panthers on Wednesday, Tom Pelissero of NFL Network reports.
Martinez is seemingly attempting to make a return to the NFL after previously announcing his retirement last November. The 29-year-old logged 20 tackles (14 solo) in four games for the Raiders a season ago and could fill a glaring need at linebacker for the Panthers, as Shaq Thompson (lower leg) is out for the year and Frankie Luvu is dealing with a hip injury.
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Giants' Blake Martinez: Returns to practice
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Martinez (undisclosed) participated in practice Friday and appears in line to play in Sunday's preseason game against the Bengals, Pat Leonard of the New York Daily News reports.
Martinez missed New York's first preseason contest against New England last Thursday and also sat out multiple practices to begin this week. The linebacker got some work in Thursday, however, and appeared to be practicing fully Friday. Leonard speculates that Martinez's absence was due to an illness rather than an injury.
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Giants' Blake Martinez: Moving well in practice
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Martinez (knee) has been moving well in OTAs this week, Pat Leonard of the New York Daily News reports.
Martinez has been wearing a red non-contact jersey in practice and hasn't been at full speed, but Leonard reports that the linebacker is fully participating in team activities. Martinez sustained a torn ACL in Week 3 of the 2021 season but is hopeful that he'll be ready for game action by August.
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Giants' Blake Martinez: On track for August return
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Martinez (knee) is hopeful to be back by August, Jordan Raanan of ESPN.com reports.
Martinez tore his ACL in a Week 3 game against Atlanta, and an August return would put him around 10 months into his recovery. When healthy, he's served as a key piece in the middle of the Giants defense, topping 140 tackles in each of the four campaigns prior to 2021. Martinez should return to a prominent role in 2022 if he proves fully healthy.
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Giants' Blake Martinez: Lands on IR
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Martinez has been placed on the Giants' injured reserve after suffering a torn ACL in New York's Week 3 loss to the Falcons, Art Stapleton of The Bergen Record reports.
Martinez is expected to miss the remainder of the year, as he will likely undergo season-ending surgery. With the linebacker now on the injured reserve, the Giants will have more flexibility to bring in potential support to fill Martinez's role. Expect Reggie Ragland to take over Martinez's starting spot as the Giants' right insider linebacker.
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Giants' Blake Martinez: Tears ACL in Week 3
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Martinez sustained an ACL tear in his left knee during Sunday's 17-14 loss to the Falcons and is expected to miss the remainder of the season, Mike Garafolo of NFL Network reports.
The Giants have yet to officially confirm the injury, but Martinez will more than likely undergo surgery in the coming days and turn his focus toward getting healthy for the start of the 2022 campaign. After inking a three-year, $30.75 million deal last offseason, Martinez racked up 151 stops, three sacks, two forced fumbles and an interception while playing all 16 games in 2020 with the Giants. He was off to another strong start in 2021 with 23 tackles in three contests, but the knee injury will deny him a chance at a fifth straight season with 140-plus tackles.
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Giants' Blake Martinez: Activated from COVID-19 list
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The Giants activated Martinez (undisclosed) from the reserve/COVID-19 list Tuesday.
Martinez spent roughly a week going through the league's COVID protocols, but he's now been cleared to join teammates at training camp. New York's top inside linebacker will have plenty of time to get ready for the start of the 2021 season.
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Giants' Blake Martinez: Placed on Covid-19 list
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Martinez was placed on the COAVID-19/reserve list Tuesday, Michael Eisen of the Giants' official site reports.
Coach Joe Judge spoke to the media but did not elaborate on Martinez's specific situation. Given that's it so early in training camp, Martinez should still have a strong chance to be ready for the regular season. He figures to play a key role in the middle of the Giants' defense in 2021 after posting 151 tackles to lead the team last season.
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Giants' Blake Martinez: Dealing with ankle injury
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Martinez is questionable for Sunday's game at Baltimore with an ankle injury, Zack Rosenblatt of The Newark Star-Ledger reports.
The 26-year-old was added to the injury report as a limited participant Friday, so he could end up being a game-time decision. Martinez has 128 total tackles, two sacks, one interception and two forced fumbles through 14 games, so his potential absence would be significant for the Giants.
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Giants' Blake Martinez: Doesn't practice Wednesday
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Martinez (back) didn't practice Wednesday, Dan Salomone of the Giants' official site reports.
Despite Martinez' unavailability Wednesday, coach Joe Judge said he's hopeful Martinez will be able to play Sunday against the Cardinals, Ralph Vacchiano of SNY.tv reports. While Martinez' absence would be a major blow to the surprisingly stingy Giants defense, the team has the personnel to overcome his absence, with rookie Tae Crowder likely to play a larger role at inside linebacker alongside David Mayo.
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Giants' Blake Martinez: Racks up 14 tackles
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Martinez had 14 tackles (eight solo) during Sunday's 20-19 win over Washington.
The 26-year-old played 67 of 73 defensive snaps, and the 14 tackles mark a season high. Martinez remains a valuable IDP option with 64 total tackles (second in the NFL), two sacks and one fumble recovery through six games.
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Giants' Blake Martinez: Back in limited capacity
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Martinez (foot) participated in the first half of Monday's scrimmage, Pat Leonard of the New York Daily News reports.
Martinez had missed Thursday's and Friday's scrimmages with an undisclosed issue, but he was seen on the sidelines getting his feet tended to by trainers Monday. The fact Martinez was able to participate in some fashion is certainly a positive sign, as it's too early to rule him out for Week 1. The former Packer is expected to handle a staring inside linebacker role for 2020 once healthy.
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Packers' Blake Martinez: Leading tackler in playoff victory
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Martinez had 10 tackles (seven solo) in Sunday's divisional-round win over the Seahawks.
Martinez was on the field for every defensive snap Sunday, and his 10 tackles led all players in the contest.
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Packers' Blake Martinez: Stacks up 11 stops
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Martinez made 11 tackles (nine solo) in Sunday's 21-13 win over the Bears.
Martinez reclaimed the league lead with 140 tackles, barely ahead of Bobby Wagner's (ankle) 139. The 25-year-old linebacker is essentially a lock to set a new career high -- his current best is 144 -- and he'll look to achieve the feat in Week 16 against the Vikings.
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Packers' Blake Martinez: Limited participant at walkthrough
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Martinez (hand/shoulder) was a listed as a limited participant at Wednesday's walkthrough.
Martinez fractured his right hand last week and played with a club in Week 8, and he apparently picked up the shoulder injury in the contest. The fact the 25-year-old was still estimated to practice in some capacity indicates he isn't in serious danger of missing Sunday's game against the Chargers.
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Packers' Blake Martinez: Active for SNF
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As expected, Martinez (wrist/hand) is active for Sunday's game against the Chiefs, Jason Wahlers of the Packers' official site reports.
It was concerning when the NFL's leading tackler was a late addition to the injury report Saturday, but all is fine with the Packers' inside linebacker. He'll seek to add to the 76 tackles he has through seven games, as the Chiefs will start their first game since 2017 without Patrick Mahomes (knee).
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Packers' Blake Martinez: Racks up 16 tackles
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Martinez had 16 tackles (eight solo) and a forced fumble in Sunday's win over the Raiders.
Martinez struggled in coverage for much of the afternoon but still managed to put forth his highest tackle total of his career. The forced fumble was a crucial one, as he knocked the ball loose from Derek Carr and it went out of the endzone for a touchback. The 25-year-old leads the NFL with 76 tackles (48 solo) and has one sack and one forced fumble through seven games.
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Packers' Blake Martinez: Held back by injury
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Martinez (shoulder) was a limited participant in Wednesday's practice, Matt Schneidman of The Athletic reports.
Martinez was hampered a shoulder injury leading up to Week 4's game versus the Eagles, and he's had nearly a week to recover since then. The Packers are likely just being cautious with their top tackler, and there's no reason to think he won't be able to play Sunday versus the Cowboys.
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Packers' Blake Martinez: Another big tackling day
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Martinez recorded 12 tackles (eight solo) during Sunday's 27-16 win over the Broncos.
Martinez has now accumulated 32 tackles (23 solo) across three games. The 25-year-old appears fully recovered from the shoulder injury that limited him in practice all week leading up to Week 3. His consistent tackle production makes Martinez a valuable IDP asset.
