It was a performance that earned praise from coaches and trainers. Joe Salave'a played last Sunday against the San Francisco 49ers despite a plantar fascitis foot injury that has bothered him since the Week 5 game at Denver.
The injury affects the base of the foot, which is obviously essential for a defensive lineman.
"I'm trying to be patient with it and get as much treatment as possible," Salave'a said. "There's not a whole lot we can do other than do the treatment that we've been using so far. I don't want to get involved in [taking painkillers] because they can really mask it, but not heal it."
Last week, the 6-3, 317-pounder managed to play into the fourth quarter in the Redskins 52-17 win over the 49ers. He was pressed into duty because defensive tackle Cornelius Griffin was out with a hip injury and backups Cedric Killings and Aki Jones were also sidelined with injuries.
Salave'a has decided to bear down and play through the injury, starting with this Sunday's game against the New York Giants.
"Hopefully, on Sunday, I won't think about it for four hours, until after the ballgame," he said.
Salave'a was listed as probable on Wednesday's injury report, but by Thursday post-practice, he was off the list. That means he is expected to play.
Griffin, however, remains listed as probable with the hip injury. Killings is also probable with an ankle sprain. Through Thursday, neither player had practiced this week.
Said Salave'a: "I know Grif. He's a competitor. He'll find a way to be in there. It takes a lot for one of us to not be in there."
Jones, a rookie out of Fordham who has yet to make his NFL regular season debut, returned to practice on Thursday. He is also listed as probable with a hamstring injury.
Assistant head coach-defense Gregg Williams hoped to have most of his linemen back practicing by Friday.
"A lot of them did a lot of things on the side today and looked pretty sharp," Williams said. "We're very fortunate. A lot of teams in the league right now are losing guys for the season. We're losing guys for a day or two of practice. At this time of year, a day or two off helps their bodies heal a little bit. We feel pretty good about it right now."
