No, I am not a doctor. Not even close, actually. I get worried when I get a headache.
Seriously.
I am, however, a fantasy football addict, and when it comes to the game, people get hurt — a lot. Week 2 couldn’t have proved that to be anymore correct, as fantasy owners watched a handful of their beloved stars limp their way to the locker room, only to never return. It’s a brutal game (fantasy, not the NFL, of course). Yes, that was sarcasm. Injuries are obviously going to happen, but man, Week 2 was insane. Not only were there a ton of them, but the majority of them impacted key fantasy football players. It’s Friday, so we’ll see some of the injury situations either clarified or even more muddled.
Let’s try to make sense of it all.
A.J. Green, Cincinnati Bengals (toe)
Green played all of six snaps last week before suffering a toe injury that forced him to sit the rest of the game against the Falcons. Many people, (myself included) assumed that with the way Cincinnati has been running the football, the friendly matchup and the fact that the Bengals bye is in Week 4, Green would sit this one out and be 100 percent after the week off. However, reports out of Cincinnati indicate that Green feels good and plans on playing this week against the Titans. He said on Friday morning that there is no soreness in his toe. Consider him a low-end WR1, only because there is a really good chance that he aggravates that foot. I still think that the Bengals run the ball a lot with Giovani Bernard and Jeremy Hill against a Titans defense that was absolutely torched by DeMarco Murray last week. Teams are already averaging a healthy 30 rushing attempts per game against the Titans this season. If you own Green, it’s going to be nearly impossible to bench him, but I would temper expectations a bit.
Jamaal Charles, Kansas City Chiefs (ankle)
Could Knile Davis week be over already?
After Jamaal Charles exited Sunday’s game against the Broncos with an ankle injury, Davis was awesome, touching the football 28 times for 105 yards and two touchdowns. Entering Week 3, he appeared to be a top-10 fantasy back with Charles likely out after being diagnosed with an ankle sprain. However, Charles has now practiced each of the last two days for the Chiefs. Perhaps it’s to confuse the Dolphins for this week, or maybe the injury wasn’t as serious as the Chiefs first thought. According to Chiefs’ reporters, both Davis and Charles took reps with the first team in practice on Friday. This will be a very interesting situation. If Charles sits, Davis is a top-10 back. If both are active, I’m not sure I’d want to touch either one.
DeSean Jackson, Washington Redskins (shoulder)
You know Jackson wants to play in this contest, but it’ll depend on how his shoulder is feeling. Jackson was limited in practice on Friday and is officially listed as questionable for Sunday’s divisional matchup with the Eagles. Jackson already said he doesn’t plan on missing this game, and head coach Jay Gruden stated that Jackson practicing today after missing Wednesday and Thursday is a step in the right direction. If he plays, I would hope he’s 100 percent, but the Eagles secondary is definitely exploitable. surrendering five passing scores through the first two weeks of the season.
DeAngelo Williams, Carolina Panthers (thigh)
After missing Week 2, Williams is officially listed as questionable, but Ron Rivera says that he expects to have his running back available for Sunday night’s contest with the Steelers. Williams didn’t practice all week until Friday, the most telling day of the week. Usually, if a player can get out there on Friday, they have a pretty good shot at playing that week. The matchup is strong, making Williams a decent flex play. Through two games, Pittsburgh is allowing the eighth-most fantasy points to opposing rushers, as well as the fourth-most rushing yards per game (170). I think Williams, who usually doesn’t see as much work as you’d normally like, could be a solid volume play. Carolina already runs the football 29 times per game, while opposing offenses are running the football a healthy 33 times per game against the Steelers, the fourth-most in the NFL.
Jordan Reed, Washington Redskins (hamstring)
Reed has already been ruled OUT for Week 3 against the Eagles, so, yeah, let’s keep him out of our lineups. Washington won’t rush him back, so Niles Paul will continue to serve as the Redskins tight end. He is coming off a very good game, catching eight of 11 targets for 99 yards and a touchdown. His 61 snaps in Week 2 were thee ighth-most among tight ends, so he’ll be out there and utilized quite a bit, especially if DeSean Jackson can’t go. Philadelphia is typically strong against tight ends, but they will be without the services of arguably their best linebacker in Mychal Kendricks. That helps Paul a ton, as Kendricks is insanely fast, being able to cover a ton of space. He’s a top-15 tight end, at the least.
Jordan Cameron, Cleveland Browns (shoulder)
Cameron was limited in practice again on Friday, and is officially listed as questionable for Sunday’s divisional battle against the Ravens. He appears 50/50 to play in this game as he continues to deal with a sprained shoulder, but he did practice on Thursday and Friday, and the Akron Beacon Journal expects him to play. If he’s out there, it’s hard to get away from him, especially as the number one option in the passing game. Monitor this situation Sunday morning.
Eric Decker, New York Jets (hamstring)
Decker didn’t practice again on Friday. He’s been nursing a nagging hamstring, but coach Rex Ryan stated that Decker doesn’t have to practice in order to play. Of course, the Jets play on Monday night against the Bears, making this a very tricky situation for fantasy owners, almost like the Brandon Marshall situation from Sunday night’s contest. It would be great if he would practice on Saturday and we got some clarity because with no Charles Tillman, this is a pretty strong matchup, especially with the way Geno Smith is playing. The Jets should be able to run the ball well on this Bears defense, giving Decker a handful of red zone scoring attempts. Consider him a game-time call for now.
Vernon Davis, San Francisco 49ers (ankle)
Davis couldn’t finish Sunday night’s game, suffering an ankle injury. He was seen on the sideline with crutches, which is never a good sign. It’s a worse sign when he was seen hobbling around the 49ers practice facility. The crutches are gone, but Davis definitely isn’t 100 percent.
