Ryan Fitzpatrick’s 2021 season appears to be over. The 17-year veteran is not expected to be back this season after he suffered a hip subluxation during Washington’s Week 1 loss to the Los Angeles Chargers, according to NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport.
The 38-year-old quarterback attempted just six regular-season passes before sustaining the injury. He has been replaced in the lineup by Taylor Heinicke, who has thrown 11 touchdowns and nine interceptions entering Sunday’s game against the Buccaneers. Heinicke is 2-5 as Washington’s starting quarterback this season, as the Football Team is just 2-6 through eight games a season after winning the NFC East title.
Fitzpatrick came to Washington last offseason following a mostly successful two-year run with the Dolphins. During that span, Fitzpatrick threw 33 touchdowns against 21 interceptions while going 7-9 as the Dolphins’ starting quarterback.
A former seventh-round pick, Fitzpatrick is 59-87-1 as an NFL starting quarterback. Fitzpatrick is 31st in NFL history with 34,990 career passing yards. His 223 career touchdown passes is good for 35th in league history. His best season was in 2015, when he led the New York Jets to a 10-6 record.
There were rumblings as to whether or not Fitzpatrick would play in 2021. Fitzpatrick has not publicly addressed his possible status for the 2022 season after sustaining his recent injury. Assuming he has recovered from his injury, Fitzpatrick would likely attract attention from teams looking to add a veteran quarterback to their roster, but age could be a factor as he’ll turn 39 later this month.
