Banged-up during Sunday's loss to the rival Minnesota Vikings, Detroit Lions cornerback Chris Houston told Anwar S. Richardson of MLive.com after the game that he firmly believes an opposing player purposely landed on his ankle with an intent to injure.
"Lineman just fell on my ankle on purpose," Houston said. "I went to cut him, and as he went down, he put both knees on my ankle on purpose. It's part of the game."
Houston was lucky to hear that X-rays after the game came up negative, even though it's unclear what type of timetable he may be looking at going forward. Houston already dealt with an ankle injury heading into the year that forced him to sit out Detroit's first two regular season games, but also told reporters that he felt okay despite the injury later on Sunday. Even so, the veteran defensive back remains steadfast in his belief that an unidentified Vikings player deliberately attempted to injure him.
"I was on the ground, so I didn't get to see who it was, but as he pulled, I cut him, he was flying over the top of me, and you could feel him land on my ankle on purpose," he said.
A crippling blow to Detroit's already razor-thin secondary if he is hampered by the injury, Houston's blunt accusation is likely to be met with criticism by both those in the league office and within the Vikings' organization. With the way the NFL continues to do everything in its power to protect itself from being labeled unsafe, the league will not be too pleased to hear concerns from fellow players about opponents intending to severely injure, regardless of how valid they may be.