LANDOVER, Md. — Ryan Fitzpatrick was knocked out of his debut as Washington’s starting quarterback Sunday with a right hip injury.
Fitzpatrick was injured on a hit from Uchenna Nwosu midway through the second quarter of the season opener against the Los Angeles Chargers. Nwosu blew past new Washington left tackle Charles Leno before getting to Fitzpatrick.
The 38-year-old was helped to his feet by teammates but went back down to one knee and then a seated position. Fitzpatrick was in obvious pain on the field before walking off with trainers.
Fitzpatrick walked immediately to the tunnel and waved to fans on his way out. He was replaced by Taylor Heinicke, the surprise star of Washington’s wild-card defeat to eventual Super Bowl champion Tampa Bay.
Fitzpatrick was 3 of 6 for 16 yards before getting hurt. Washington is the ninth team Fitzpatrick has started for during his 17-year NFL career.
Heinicke was signed to be Washington’s “quarantine quarterback” last season while he was taking college classes online. Before the playoff game, he hadn’t played in the NFL since 2018 in Carolina.
Fans chanted “HEINICKE! HEINICKE!” when he entered the game. Those chants continued after he threw a 11-yard touchdown pass to Logan Thomas early in the second half to give Washington the lead.
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