Packers TE Luke Musgrave Reveals Details About Kidney Injury

Packers tight end Luke Musgrave, who suffered a Grade 4 lacerated kidney against the Chargers last month, is back at practice but has an uncertain short-term future.

GREEN BAY, Wis. – Blood in his urine and intense pain were the clues that something wasn’t quite right for Green Bay Packers tight end Luke Musgrave following the Nov. 19 victory over the Los Angeles Chargers.

So, Musgrave checked into the emergency room, where he learned he had suffered a lacerated kidney. On a scale of 1-to-5, it was Grade 4. At least he avoided surgery.

“Yeah, it wasn’t awesome,” Musgrave said on Friday.

After about a month on injured reserve, the Packers designated him to return from injured reserve on Thursday. He didn’t practice on Thursday or Friday and was ruled out for Sunday’s game at the Carolina Panthers.

Given the significance of the injury and with only two games remaining on schedule after Sunday, there’s no guarantee Musgrave will play again this year.

“My goal is to play as soon as possible,” he said. “With these things, it’s kind of weird, so it just depends on how I’m doing. My goal is to play. That’s my goal, so we’re going to see.”

Of course, an injured kidney is different than a sprained ankle. The recovery process starts and ends with rest. There’s no rehab regimen, and a potential reinjury is much more dangerous than tweaking an ankle.

“The issue is kidneys can regulate blood pressure,” he said. “So far, it’s looking all right.”

Musgrave suffered the injury against the Chargers. He caught a pass from Jordan Love, was tackled and fell on the ball.

At the moment, Musgrave didn’t think much of the pain, so he kept playing.

“I knew something was probably wrong, but it’s football,” he said. “You play through pain and then it usually hurts more after the game.”

Had he known the nature of the injury, he said he “probably” would have come out of the game. Once the adrenaline wore off, the pain kicked in and intensified. And then he went to the bathroom.

“When I got home, it really started hurting, kind of in your back, and that’s where your kidney is,” he said. “And then when I went to the bathroom, it clicked pretty quick.”

A second-round draft pick, Musgrave was having a banner rookie season. In 10 games, he caught 33 passes for 341 yards and one touchdown. In franchise history, only 2000 first-round pick Bubba Franks caught more passes (34) for more yards (363) among rookie tight ends.

The injury derailed Musgrave’s chances of blowing those records away. Now, he’s hopeful to get a chance to break the record, with games at the Minnesota Vikings and at home against the Chicago Bears coming up after Sunday’s game at the Panthers.

“I’ll play through pain,” he said. “It might be a little different when it comes to internal stuff. I don’t want to have long-term issues, but I’ll play through pain. So, if I’m safe to play, I’ll play through pain.”

Whether that happens is completely out of his hands. While he wants to play, that will be a medical decision. There will be no forcing the issue, as he did after suffering an ankle injury at Denver but playing the following week against Minnesota.

“I’m just going to follow their track, talk to the doctors, and it’s probably going to be more down the road is when we figure it out,” he said. “But, yeah, it’ll be good.”

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