Injuries are undoubtedly a part of football. Some are more common than others, though. Injuries to the joints often fall upon the sport's finest talents. Bones and tendons are unwitting suspects, capable of bending and snapping with a wrong step.
Muscles, too, face their fair share of challenges on the football field. Quarterbacks are forced to ward off opposition rushers and ballhawks in the secondary every time they drop back. But when they try to outwit the defense with fiery tosses, they can put their body — more specifically, their oblique muscles — at risk.
With that, here's what you need to know about oblique injuries, an ailment that has made a marked impact on the gridiron in recent seasons.
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What is an oblique injury in football?
An oblique injury refers to a malady that affects the oblique muscle, which is located on the lower sides of one's abdomen. The ailment can take on multiple forms; strains are possible, as are tears.
Oblique injuries aren't too common in football, especially when compared to other medical issues like torn ACLs and sprained ankles. The injury has found a home on the diamond, striking down MLB stars like Aaron Judge and Yordan Alvarez in years past. The torque required to strike a baseball could help explain the injury's prevalence in baseball. Still, oblique injuries are proving increasingly more prevalent in football.
Strained oblique meaning
MedicineNet defines an oblique injury, or side strain, as a "sharp pain in the rib cage the first time the oblique muscle gets injured. Over time, you may experience a sense of tightness and pressure on the lower ribs or the front side of the abdomen."
Where are the oblique muscles located?
The oblique muscles are located on the sides of one's abdomen. The muscles lie alongside the rectus abdominis muscle — the muscles that make up the "six-pack."
Per MLB.com, oblique muscles are responsible for core control and rotation. There are two pairs of oblique muscles on each side — the internal and external obliques. The internal obliques sit beneath the external obliques. Most oblique injuries affect the internal obliques, which are activated the most during physical activity like throwing a football.
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What do oblique muscles do?
Oblique muscles have multiple functions. The external obliques rotate the trunk area of one's body. They also help pull the chest downwards, which aids in compressing the abdominal cavity, per Healthline. They assist with bending on the side and breathing. They're also vital for core stability and rotation. Those functions are useful on the gridiron, particularly for quarterbacks.
Oblique injury causes in NFL
Oblique injuries typically occur when an athlete overstretches or overloads their oblique muscles, according to Midwest Orthopaedics at Rush. The injury disproportionately affects quarterbacks, as the throwing motion activates hurlers' core muscles.
Midwest Orthopaedics at Rush laid out three scenarios that could result in a passer injuring their oblique. They are as follows:
- During a powerful throw with torso rotation
- When a throw is made off-balance or under pressure
- After repetitive high-intensity passing without adequate recovery
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Oblique injury symptoms in football
Those facing an oblique injury tend to feel pain. The sensation can fall upon the waist area, low abs and pelvis. It can also affect the following areas, per ActiveCare Physical Therapy:
- Groin area
- Testicles
- Bladder
Burning and discomfort in the urinary tract can occur in patients. The pain and symptoms imitates many acute and chronic conditions, so a full physical exam is needed to determine the nature of the injury.
Derek Carr missed four games as a result of an oblique strain in 2024, for example.
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Oblique strain grades in football
Oblique strains are graded on a 1-3 scale.
- Grade 1 represents a mild strain
- Grade 2 reflects a moderate strain
- Grade 3 involves a severe strain that ruptures the muscle
Oblique injury treatments in NFL
Milder strains can heal in days. Grade 3 strains can require surgery and take months to recover from.
A 2017 study by former Dodgers athletic trainer Stan Conte of Conte Injury Analytics, Hospital for Special Surgery in New York City and Major League Baseball found hitters typically take 27 days to recover from Grade 1 strains. For pitchers, that figure balloons to 35 days.
Quarterbacks who suffer the injury are likely to take longer to recover given the physical punishment they can face.
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Oblique injury recovery timeline in NFL
Oblique injury timelines differ depending on the nature of the strain. Grade 1 strains can heal in days, while Grade 3 strains may sideline athletes for 3-4 months.
How an oblique injury impacts performance in football
Oblique injuries are painful. As such, a player attempting to play through the ailment will need to overcome the sensation to return to the field. The oblique muscle is vital to facilitating rotational power and core stability. So quarterbacks affected by the injury often see their passing range shrink. Given the core's impact on mobility, one can expect passers dealing with the ailment to be more averse to attempting to run the football.
Can players play through an oblique injury?
Technically speaking, players can play through oblique injuries. However, to do so, they'll have to play beyond the pain barrier. Painkillers can help mitigate pain's effect on one's performance. But a player is only as good as their comfort level is.
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