Rich Hofmann: How hard will Westbrook's concussion hit Eagles?

"A boxer losing by way of a Technical Knock Out (TKO) resulting from head blows shall receive a medical suspension and shall not participate in any boxing activity for a minimum period of thirty (30) days. A boxer losing by way of a Knock Out (KO) shall receive a medical suspension and shall not participate in any boxing activity for a minimum period of sixty days. At the discretion of the physician, longer suspension periods may be issued for either the TKO or KO."

- From Regulatory Guidelines of the Association of Boxing Commissions

LANDOVER, Md. - If Brian Westbrook were a boxer, which he is not, and if he were indeed knocked cold last night after a knee rudely encountered his head, which he was, he would not be playing again until about the Eagles' 15th game of the season.

Because this is football, no one expects that. But as the Eagles enter the meat-grinder part of their schedule, it seems pretty clear that they will be doing it without their top running back.

As the real games begin - Giants and Cowboys and Chargers and et cetera - it appears as if the Eagles will have to scheme their way and Wildcat their way and Shady McCoy their way around the absence of their most accomplished runner. If Westbrook were to play Sunday against the Giants, it would be as miraculous as it would be irresponsible.

With 7 minutes and 3 seconds left in the first quarter of the Eagles' 27-17 win over the Redskins, Westbrook was motionless on the field for several minutes after taking an accidental knee to the back of the neck from Redskins linebacker London Fletcher. It was one of those scary NFL moments, easily identified not as much by the play or the injury but by the obvious concern expressed by players from both sides as the player is being attended to.

When players start kneeling in prayer in the vicinity of the fallen player, you know they are worried. When they need to be shooed away by the officials and only leave with reluctance, you know. In this case, there was the additional, poignant gesture made by Eagles coach Andy Reid. As the players from both teams were moved away, Reid made sure that one of the Redskins stayed with him near the fallen Eagles star. The player was Byron Westbrook, Brian's brother, a Washington special-teams player.