Springs Will Miss Three to Six Weeks

Redskins Cornerback Has Surgery for Abdominal Injury, Is Questionable for Opener

Cornerbacks coach Jerry Gray, left, chatted with Shawn Springs after practice earlier this month. "My job is to ensure that he keeps progressing," Gray said. (By Preston Keres -- The Washington Post)

Washington Redskins left cornerback Shawn Springs will miss three to six weeks after undergoing surgery yesterday to repair a torn abdominal muscle, giving the team two significant injury concerns about their starting lineup with less than a month until the season opener.

The surgery came a day after running back Clinton Portis was told he will miss the remainder of the preseason with a partially dislocated left shoulder.

Neither player is a certainty for the Sept. 11 opener against the Minnesota Vikings at FedEx Field.

The injury to Springs was described as a minor tear in the abdominal muscle that attaches to the pubic bone. It underscores the team's increasing concerns about depth and further explains the timing of the Redskins' Monday night trade of wide receiver Taylor Jacobs to San Francisco for cornerback Mike Rumph.

Rumph watched practice yesterday at Redskins Park but did not participate because Jacobs had not completed his physical for the 49ers.

Redskins Coach Joe Gibbs said yesterday that he had not anticipated that Springs, 31, would require surgery, because he had not missed a day of practice and had played in the Aug. 5 scrimmage against Baltimore and Sunday in Cincinnati.

"Shawn Springs was a surprise to us from the standpoint that he had not missed any practices, played the other night in the game and we really weren't expecting anything that needed to be repaired," Gibbs said. "But he had complained about his groin area some, but it wasn't bad enough to keep him out."

Despite having a perfect attendance record, Springs was concerned about his health before yesterday's surgery. Under the Redskins' supervision, he underwent an MRI exam on his groin area early last week. Springs said last week that the MRI was precautionary because he had felt discomfort.

While it is unclear what the MRI results revealed, if anything, Springs nonetheless played in Sunday's exhibition opener having been examined for a potential injury days earlier.

William Meyer performed the surgery in Durham, N.C. Gibbs said the procedure was not complicated.

"I don't know the medical terms, but he had pulled one of the ligaments from the bone," Gibbs said. "It's a fairly simple process. The same one that [Redskins place kicker] John Hall had, so they decided it was best for Shawn and for us to go ahead and get that repaired."

Depth had been a lurking concern throughout training camp, and the injury to Springs heightened the priority on building a competent defensive backfield.