NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) — Tennessee Titans cornerback Elijah Molden is used to the business of pro football as a second-generation NFL player.
Molden didn’t worry that the injured groin putting him on injured reserve Sept. 9 would cost him a full season even after an offseason NFL rule change limiting teams to bringing back only eight players from injured reserve to the active roster this season.
“It is definitely a game that the front office plays, you know chess, not checkers,” Molden said. “So I talked with my agent, talked with the coaches and front office and let them work it out.”
As the NFL hits the halfway point of the season, Molden remains on injured reserve as one of 13 Titans sidelined by injury. That’s the most in the league per Spotrac.com, a year after the Titans set an NFL record last season using an NFL record 91 different players in a non-strike season.
The Titans already are halfway to the 26 placed on injured reserve a year ago and used the unlimited return rule to help earn the AFC’s No. 1 seed.