2012 Recap and a Look Ahead to 2013

Here’s the link to my post over at FFLockerRoom.com, recapping the 2012 season and taking a look at how some key injuries will effect 2013.

http://fflockerroom.com/2013/02/05/the-season-that-was/

Enjoy!!

Week 14 Recap

Well, Week 14 didn’t go the way I planned. Not sure about you, but I had 4 teams in these playoffs and I’m on the brink of losing all 4 (2 upsets, 2 I probably should lose). The biggest culprits for me were Miles Austin, Vernon Davis, and my trio of Saints (Marques Colston, Lance Moore, Jimmy Graham). All three guys underperformed considerably and may end up costing me dearly.

From an injury standpoint, Week 14 wasn’t terrible, but we did get news that Fred Jackson is out for the year after suffering a grade 2 MCL sprain of his right knee. Shutting him down makes total sense, with the Bills’ season being over already and his extensive history of knee pathology. CJ Spiller becomes the man in Buffalo and should see a huge increase in his value moving forward.

Additionally, we saw a couple of Giants who are gritting out injuries, but really having a hard time with them. Hakeem Nicks had to have X-rays done on his sore knee and seems to have a bout of swelling and soreness each and every week now. To add insult to injury, he came down directly on the knee, causing pain and some missed time during the game. In addition, Ahmad Bradshaw suffered a knee sprain to go along with his already sore foot and neck, so he’s dealing with a trio of painful injuries at the same time. High pain thresholds are one thing, but three injuries (and two involving his legs) at once is tough to deal with and may lead to his workload being decreased, especially with David Wilson’s breakthrough game. I’d expect Nicks to be limited all week and be close to a game time decision while Bradshaw’s news will come out as the week goes on, giving us insight about his Week 15 status. Stay tuned.

And how can we forget Robert Griffin III and his right knee injury. Word is (as I expected) he suffered a sprained lateral collateral ligament (LCL), but the severity seems to be in the grade 1/2 range, which is definitely something that can be played through. What RGIII loses with this injury is some stability in the knee when he cuts or twists, as the LCL is the ligament that connects the femur (thigh bone) to the tibia (shin bone) on the outside of the knee. So anytime a player has LCL involvement and tries to play through it, a brace of varying strength is involved. My expectation is that he will play this week, especially since the severity of the sprain is a grade 1 or 2, which is mild to moderate in nature. However, we’ll wait til Friday to see what his practice participation was like this week.

Quick Hits:

Jay Cutler suffered a “whiplash” type injury on Sunday, which is normally categorized as a muscular injury to the neck muscles. He should receive a ton of treatment this week to help decrease inflammation and soreness and should play this week…Jared Cook seems to have suffered a re-aggravation of his shoulder injury from early in the season. Watch out for him to be limited this week and his availability for Week 15 is up in the air…Ray Rice suffered a hip pointer that’s being classified as “minor”. Wait until later in the week to see if he practices or not this week, but with the Ravens in the thick of the home field advantage race, expect him to play. Click this link (http://tinyurl.com/benbhhw) and scroll down to the Hip Pointer paragraph to gain a better understanding of what this injury entails…Victor Cruz had a monster day on Sunday, but he also hurt his shoulder during the game, requiring sideline evaluation to determine the extent of the injury. He basically played the whole game otherwise, so expect him to be just fine. We’ll monitor it just in case…Dwayne Bowe has two fractured ribs, which means he’ll either be able to play through it and tolerate the pain or his season may be over. More information should come out this week…Marshawn Lynch flared up his low back a little bit during his standout game against the Cardinals. Remember, he’s dealt with back spasms all season and has basically been a “rest” scratch from every Wednesday practice this season. He’ll do the same deal this week and should be fine for Week 15, but back spasms are a tricky, fickle injury, so keep an eye on him…Darren McFadden practiced today, which is a great sign for his availability for Week 15 after re-aggravating his high ankle sprain this past Thursday. If he continues to increase his availability, he should be fine, but monitor his situation closely.

That should cover the biggies. If your leagues are anything like mine, tonight is a VERY important night. Not only are my Pats playing on MNF, but I also need Steven Ridley and Matt Schaub to have huge days and Wes Welker and the Houston Defense to do not so well. So here’s hoping the Pats win 52-45 (wishful thinking, I know).

What To Make of Fred Jackson’s Concussion

Rest assured, the fact that Fred Jackson was ruled out of Thursday night’s game so quickly is not because his concussion is overly severe. It basically comes down to logistics. In order for Jackson to return to play, he has to be symptom free for 24 hours, undergo a battery of tests by the team’s physicians/trainers called IMPACT, return to light exercise, then return to slightly more aggressive exercise, and then be cleared by an independent Neurologist to return to contact. I don’t know about you, but after a Sunday game, waiting 24 hours takes you to late Monday. Assuming all went well, light practice wouldn’t have been done until Tuesday, with slightly more practice being done Wednesday. That doesn’t give enough time for a Neurologist to come in and clear him because he’s out of practice time at that point. So I think there’s a good chance he’s back for Week 12, but just to alleviate any fears, he was ruled out due to logistics, not severity of injury.

So what do you do now? Well, CJ Spiller obviously gets a huge bump in value as he will be the primary back now. Tashard Choice will get some carries as well and maybe come in a couple series’ to spell Spiller and keep him fresh. Not too enticing if you don’t already own Spiller, right? One guy I really like this week, coming off two solid weeks, is Marcel Reese of the Raiders. He’s clearly more valuable in a PPR league because he’s their primary pass catcher out of the backfield, so standard league folks may not be as excited. But with the Raiders constantly playing from behind and having to abandon the run, Reese is getting much more run than Taiwan Jones, which increases his value significantly. Look to Reese if you need some help this week.

One other guy to look at as a RB2/Flex fill in is Chris Ivory from the Saints. He obviously has two other guys he’s sharing carries with, but he’s looked very explosive these last two weeks and has hit paydirt both weeks. I like him this week against the Raiders.

Lastly, don’t forget about the folks coming off a bye week. Larod Stephens-Howling is still available, as he had a solid game in Week 9 against Green Bay. Not a fantastic matchup against the Falcons, but you know he’s getting a ton of touches and, like Reese, he’ll be playing from behind.

Week 4 Injury Reactions

Week 4 brought us very highly anticipated returns from fantasy studs like Fred Jackson, CJ Spiller, Reggie Bush, and possibly Matt Forte (looks like he’s got a shot at being active). It also left us wanting, with guys like Hakeem Nicks, Aaron Hernandez, and Kenny Britt still on the shelf. Here’s some initial reactions about the guys that did play and a look ahead to Week 5 for the guys who didn’t.

Fred Jackson: This was one game that I watched from beginning to end (gotta watch my beloved Pats) and, though he didn’t do too much out there numbers-wise, he didn’t look limited in the least big. He broke a 30+ yard screen pass on one play and pushed off that R foot just fine. I thought the Bills coaching staff did a great job of managing his touches, but they’re offense just kept turning the ball over, which made it difficult to stay intent on running the football. He said he had some soreness in the knee afterwards, but so long as it doesn’t turn into swelling and stiffness, I feel pretty good about him. I like him a lot going forward and would go back to playing him week in and week out.

CJ Spiller: His return just didn’t go as well. I feel vindicated in my analysis of him and Fred Jackson, as I said they could both very well be ok, but I wouldn’t trust them in the first week back. I don’t think the shoulder contributed to his lack of production, but when he was tackled and driven into the ground, he was visibly grabbing onto his injured shoulder, leading me to believe that he basically reinjured that sucker again. He said after the game that it felt sore, and I think he came out of the game worse than Jackson because I visibly saw him favoring his shoulder during the game. At first glance, I’d sit him again next week, especially with as good as Jackson looked, the Bills won’t feel quite as rushed. Unless he miraculously is 100% in less than a week (he won’t be), I’d sit him again.

Jared Cook: He played on Sunday, getting 4 targets and catching 3 of them. He didn’t hit pay dirt, but he did come out of the game unscathed and should be much closer to 100% next week. They also played a very, very tough Texans D, so hopefully you took my advice and sat him. It also didn’t help that Jake Locker (more on him in a minute) was knocked out with a aggravation of his separated shoulder (it must be AC sprain season), relegating Cook to catching passes from Matt Hasselback. Look for Hasselback to start next week, which could mean a slight decrease in Cook’s value.

Jake Locker: He really took a hit to that separated left AC joint and subluxation (think of it as a mini dislocation, where the ball pops out slightly, but re-sets itself), leaving the game after getting driven into the ground. I’m thinking this is the time they make the decision to sit him for a week and let things settle. Pick up Hasselback if you need a guy or look for an Andy Dalton type out on the wire. An MRI after the game revealed no structural damage to the left shoulder, but I still don’t trust it. Make sure you sit him.

Dwayne Bowe: There was doubt about his effectiveness with a quad strain this week, which can really limit a player’s burst due to the strength and power housed within such a large muscle group. Must not have been a very serious strain because he looked great on Sunday. With unrest at QB for the Chiefs, change could be coming. But in terms of Bowe’s status moving forward, all signs point to him being healthy heading forward. Play him.

Santonio Holmes: Now that’s an injury that looked bad. Thankfully for Jets’ fans, the X-rays came back negative on his left foot. However, X-rays just tell a small part of the picture (bony pathology), as the important info will be his MRI results. Based on the mechanism of injury, I’d say a moderate to severe sprain of various ligaments around the ankle is plausible. We won’t know much til then, but my gut feeling is he’ll be out this coming week and possibly limited in week 6. Look for a fill in until then.

Jonathan Stewart: He finished Sunday with a disappointing 40 yards rushing, and from what I saw, didn’t look limited by the sprained toe. I think as long as he didn’t suffer a setback, the toe won’t be a lingering thing. My bigger concern is the time share he has going on with DeAngelo Williams and the fact that Cam Newtown is basically their goal line back. I’m not too high on Stewart at this point, and it’s really not injury related. I think his toe will be fine, but right now he doesn’t look like anything more than a decent Flex option.

Rob Gronkowski: He entered Sunday’s matchup questionable with a hip injury. The Pats are as tight-lipped as it gets when it comes to injuries, so I wasn’t able to find out what exactly was going on with his hip. But he didn’t looked bothered by it at all, as he caught a nice TD pass running the seam in the 2nd half and had a deep ball thrown to him that he should have caught, but was just short on. He looked just fine, I’d run him out there with confidence.

Steven Jackson: He was clearly limited by his groin strain and he really doesn’t look explosive right now. This is two weeks in a row without good burst, which is getting a little worrisome. My thought is that he’s doing ok during the week, getting treatment and working to calm down inflammation/stretch/strengthening the adductors (groin muscles), I just think the second he really tries to play free of thought, he begins to feel the restriction. One week of limitation was ok, as that’s expected. But with two weeks of limitation in a row, I’d be a bit concerned. Wait until the end of the week to make a decision, but if they play the whole “game time decision” card again, he may be an injury-sit this week. Look for Darryl Richardson if he’s out there as a handcuff or maybe a guy like Joique Bell, who looked solid as Mikel LeShoure’s backup.

Greg Jennings: See Steven Jackson above, as they’re both dealing with the same injury. Jennings’ is worse because he clearly hasn’t been the same and he actually had to leave the game. Coach Sherman even said Jennings looked how he was two weeks ago. Not looking good. Prepare for another missed game, maybe two, as he can’t seem to get over this groin strain. Leonard Hankerson could be an option, even Andre Roberts or Dominik Hixon.

Mikel LeShoure: This rounds up groin-strain central, as he played and finished the game as the lead carrier for the Lions. He didn’t look fantastic, but overall, he appears to be the guy right now in Detroit. He has the luxury of a bye week to get things right, but expect him to be the lead back with Joique Bell backing him up. (Anyone know what the hell happened to Kevin Smith??)

Matthew Stafford: He wasn’t limited by his hamstring strain, as he moved around well and didn’t have a noticeable limp. He’s not really looking like the Stafford we saw last year, but it doesn’t seem to be injury related. He’ll have a bye week to get things together and look for him to have a big game in Week 6.

Jeremy Maclin: I still think he’s bothered by the hip pointer injury he suffered two weeks ago and coming back as fast as he did didn’t do him any favors. I don’t like him right now, especially with all the “bench Vick” talk that was coming out of Eagles camp prior to Vick’s save-his-ass win against the Giants. It seems like a fluid situation, but Vick probably bought himself another couple weeks, but Maclin is clearly limited, in my opinion. I’m almost to the point where I sit him next week until something changes in his route running and explosiveness.

Willis McGahee: Nothing like playing the Raiders to make your ribs feel aaallllll better. He looked fantastic, finishing with 112 yards and 1 TD, also notching a full carry load of 19. He looks like a go from here on out.

Pierre Garcon: He lucked himself into a touchdown, recovering an RGIII fumble in the end zone. He was not targeted much at all and finished with 1 catch. Remember, he was the guy who RGIII was looking for early and often in Week 1, as it appeared they had developed good chemistry. So the fact that he was barely targeted should tell you he was still limited. They’re reporting he had no setbacks during the game, but who knows based on how he looked. They have a tough mactchup against the Falcons this week, so monitor the injury reports this week and plan accordingly. Leonard Hankerson might not be a bad handcuff, as he appeared to be the next go-to guy.

LeSean McCoy: Word was he “tweaked” his knee during the Giants game, which typically means a mild ligament sprain. There were no reports of swelling or a limp, which is a good sign. Monitor his practice status this week, but he should be out there for Week 5.

Rashard Mendenhall: With the bye week behind them, Mendenhall is reported to be ready to go for this coming week against the Eagles. October 7th puts him approximately 10 1/2 months post ACL tear, which is nearing that 1 year window. I wouldn’t necessarily play him his first week out there, but he seems to be on track to making an Adrian Peterson-like return. If he looks good

Ahmad Bradshaw: He didn’t have a great game, but the point is he looked good and didn’t have any setbacks. Andre Brown only had 5 carries compared to Bradshaw’s 13, so it’s clear who the lead back is. Look for Bradshaw to play better in Week 5.

Kenny Britt: He was held out of week 4, and Coach Munchak said it was done with an eye towards getting Britt out there for week 5. This ankle injury is a little troublesome, especially considering he was coming off an ACL injury last year. Like I mentioned earlier, with Locker out and Cook not fully healthy, it’s hard to like the Titans’ skills guys. One positive could be that Hasselback is more of a prototypical pocket passer and doesn’t scramble like Locker does, which could mean more throws to the outside in week 5.

Hakeem Nicks: This much post-surgical soreness this long after surgery is troublesome. I’m officially worried, being a Nicks owner and all. I just worry that he is re-aggravating either the area of the surgical site or placing too much strain on other regions of the foot to compensate. Either way, it’s bad news. Based on how early they ruled him out, I think they had an eye towards Week 5 (pure speculation). If he practices Thursday and Friday, limited or not, I’d probably chance it based on how he played against the Bucs when he was hurt. If he skips days and is labeled “game time decision”, I’d lean towards the bench.

Aaron Hernandez: Reports are he’s recovering nicely, maybe a little ahead of schedule. He wasn’t officially diagnosed with a high ankle sprain, but if you read my previous post on high ankle sprains (YOU DIDN’T?? How dare you. No excuses now: https://ziaddahdul.wordpress.com/2012/09/18/dodging-the-dreaded-high-ankle-sprain/), you know these injuries are tricky. I’m eyeing week 6 against the Seahawks, so I’d stay away from him regardless of what comes out this week. Too risky with all the options the Pats have. They have the luxury of not rushing him, so wait on it.

Ok kids, that’s it for now. I tried to give you guys a longer one today to make up for my lack of action this weekend. Will follow up Wednesday and Thursday once the practice reports come out. Enjoy!

Ravens/Browns Update & Other News

First off, quick update for tomorrow’s game between the Ravens and Browns. Not a ton going on fantasy wise, but let’s do a quick run through:

Ravens:

Basically, not a damn thing. Ladarius Webb had a minor little thing, but he’s probable and will play. Roll out everyone you normally would. And for what it’s worth, I think Joe Flacco throws 3 TDs, all to RBs/WRs (I think Dennis Pitta gets shut out since the Browns are very solid against TEs this year).

Browns:

Trent Richardson is officially forever probable, but his knee is good to go. He has a tough match up this week, so I could see why any Richardson-owner would be hesitant, but I think he sneaks in a late TD, possibly on a screen pass, which Brandon Weeden will be checking down to all night. I’d still play him.

Joshua Cribbs is also probable with a sprained knee, but I don’t like him at all this week. Weeden really is not very good, and the Ravens pass rush is going to throw different looks at the rookie QB. Cribbs really didn’t look 100% this past week anyways. I’d sit him.

Mohamed Massaquoi is officially out. I’m so, so sorry if you were relying on him (your chances to win this season aren’t good if you’re relying on guys like him), but he’s not going to suit up tomorrow.

I honestly don’t like anyone on the Browns tomorrow except for Richardson. Baltimore is dominant at home and is coming off an emotional win against the Pats, which I think will cause a bit of a let down early on, but come on, it’s the freakin Browns.

Other News:

Ahmad Bradshaw: Full participant in practice Wednesday, he looks like a go. I think he’ll be ok, even though he’s in more of a time share now than he probably thought he would be. But if you’ve been waiting on him, play him. He seems ready to go

Arian Foster/Andre Johnson: Get used to these guys being limited on Wednesdays. Reports are they’re going to be “limited” participants because the Texans are going to use Wednesdays as rest days. Play both.

Roy Helu/Beanie Wells: I combined these two because they were both placed on IR today with turf toes, effectively keeping them out until November. Both were pretty big disappointments thus far, so thank your lucky stars. However, Ryan Williams’s stock shot through the roof.

Jeremy Maclin: He practiced today, which is good. I still think he’s toughing this hip pointer out, because he doesn’t seem right at all. I just think he’s gutting through this injury and being a good solider, but if he was on my team, I’d sit him until he demonstrates he can play a whole game.

Matthew Stafford: Reports say he didn’t practice, but did do some things on the side and was moving around well. It seems like the Lions are just being cautious, but this is one of those cases where the end of the week will tell the story. Wait until Friday, but make sure you have a serviceable backup just in case (Ryan Fitzpatrick is available in a ton of leagues, and the Pats aren’t exactly world beaters against throwing teams).

Titus Young: He didn’t practice today with an undisclosed knee injury. I don’t remember hearing anything about this over the weekend, so just monitor and adjust accordingly.

Hakeem Nicks: He had his scheduled “non-practice” on Wednesday, as the Giants’ plan was to have Nicks practice on Thursday for the first time. Post-surgical soreness is pretty normal, so here’s hoping that 10 days of rest and rehab went a long way for him. I think he’s dress and play, and I’m expecting him to look a lot more fresh this week.

Reggie Bush/Matt Forte/Fred Jackson: They were no practice/practice/practice today, respectively. I’m lumping them together because all three scream “TOO SOON” to me.

• Jackson was very honest, saying there were a lot of things that didn’t feel quite right, even though some things felt good. I   think he doesn’t play and I’m in total agreement with that.
• Forte seems like he’s on pace to play, and he will have the extra day since they play Monday. My gut is that he tries to go, but I have Michael Bush is one league and I’m confidently playing him regardless of what comes out.
• I can’t imagine Bush playing this week after he JUST injured his knee. I know they were happy that nothing was structurally damaged in his knee, but he reportedly still has a lot of stiffness and swelling in the knee, which is never a good sign. It’s typically 7-10 days before swelling really clears out of the joint space. I’d sit him this week, go with Daniel Thomas or Lamar Miller if you picked them up, I just don’t like ol’ Reg this week.

CJ Spiller: Reports are he’s going to make a strong push to play this week, and it seems like he’s progressing well. From an injury standpoint, I don’t necessarily think he will damage the shoulder any more than it already is, but there will be pain associated with it when he gets hit. My one concern is if he gets tackled and goes down shoulder first, because that’s a very common mechanism for AC joint separations. I’d probably err on the side of sitting him this week regardless of what news comes out.

Ok boys and girls, as more news comes out, I’ll post more information. Friday’s practices will tell us a lot about these guys. Keep checking the waiver wire for more gems.

Injury Updates from Week 3

Here are some quick thoughts relating to injuries that could affect your week 4 lineup now that the dust has settled:

Reggie Bush: This is the biggest surprise from Sunday’s big injuries, as reports say he will play this week. The prevailing thought is that he bruised the knee, as MRI results came back negative for any structural damage. A knee bruise is a relatively broad diagnosis, but he basically had trauma to some bony region of the knee joint, which is great news considering they thought something was structurally wrong. He won’t do any more damage by playing on it, but will have to tolerate some pain. Wait for his participation in practice this week and act accordingly. Lamar Miller and Daniel Thomas are still in play at this point.

Matt Forte: Per Jason LaCanfora (seriously follow thus guy in twitter, he’s pretty awesome @JasonLaCanfora), he’s not going to play Monday night. If this is true, I think it’s a great idea. Rushing back from an ankle sprain can be disastrous for a RB, with all the planting, cutting, and dynamic motion required at the ankle joint. Any instability in the joint can not only sap him of his quickness and speed, but also compromise other regions of the ankle, knee, or hip due to compensation. Keep plugging in Michael Bush if you handcuffed Forte properly. If not, well, sorry.

Willis McGahee: According to coach John Fox, McGahee’s rib injury involves the cartilage, which is no bueno. The cartilage can be both very painful and slow to heal, as cartilage damage can be quite painful just from breathing in deeply. Poor blood supply is the culprit for the slow healing in addition to the lack of elasticity of the cartilage, which makes it averse to stretch. I don’t like the idea of him trying to play this week, but there still appears to be chance he plays this week. My gut feeling is that he plays, but is very limited. I’d sit him (I hope the guy I’m playing this week doesn’t read this).

Ahmad Bradshaw: He has “guaranteed” that he will play this week and has received clearance from docs to return to practice, so if all looks good this week, he should play, barring any setbacks. I think with as good as Andre Brown looked last week, there will be no rush to get Bradshaw back in the lineup. I think he plays, but I feel like he’ll play and have limited carries just so he’s not overworked right off the bat. The Eagles aren’t exactly world beaters, so there should be plenty of carries to go around.

Patrick Willis: He sprained his ankle against the Vikings this past Sunday as X-rays showed no fracture. He was even seen walking after the game without a noticeable limp. Looks like he’s considered day to day and could potentially limit him. The sprain, according to reports, is not considered serious, as some reports even called it “minor” in nature. I think he plays because he’s just a freakin stud, so throw out the Niners D this week with confidence.

Fred Jackson: He’s giving himself a 70-75% of playing this week. Coach Gailey says that Jackson may practice tomorrow. I’ve talked relatively in depth about Jackson’s knee injury (http://tinyurl.com/bnx86oh) and the severity of the injury is real. I can’t imagine they throw him out there this week against a pretty solid run defense less than 3 weeks after injuring the knee. I mean, Jackson HIMSELF doesn’t even think he’s 100%, so I don’t think the Bills would risk such a valuable commodity. CJ Spiller might even play this week (see below), so with Jackson, Spiller, and Tashard Choice, the backfield is a bit muddled. I’d sit Jackson whether he plays or not.

CJ Spiller: Spiller is the latest week 3 injury that looks much less serious than initially expected. I’ve already talked about his injury (http://tinyurl.com/8edyguj) so I won’t bore you with the details. Fact of the matter, he shouldn’t play one week after spraining his shoulder because, I’m not sure if anyone knows this little-known fact, but RBs get hit! And they get hit quite often by d-linemen, linebackers, and even the ground. Sit him this week. I think Tashard Choice is the…um…choice this week (sorry).

(Now this gets fast because I’m getting tired)

Julio Jones: Lacerated hand…as long as he didn’t puncture or significantly break skin (sounds like he didn’t, based on reports), I’d expect him to be just fine and dandy this week.

Kenny Britt: His hamstring seems better, workload keeps increasing, and there’s, quite frankly, not a ton of options in the Titans receiving core. If you need help this week at the WR3 or Flex spot, play him, but just beware because the Titans play the Texans this week.

Matthew Stafford: So they’ve narrowed it down to two muscle groups that Stafford strained, the hamstrings and the glutes. I think he plays either way, but he did have an MRI yesterday as a precaution and Coach Schwartz was about as vague as possible, saying he has no comment and more will be determined Friday. If I was a Stafford owner, I’d make a speculative Shaun Hill pickup just in case, but I think he plays.

More to come Thursday. Now go pick up some players!

Injury Reactions From Sunday’s Week 3

Sunday was an interesting day for fantasy owners, as we saw some big names go down to injury, from new fantasy darling CJ Spiller to oft-injured and oft-frustrating Reggie Bush. Here’s a quick look at some important developments and what it mean to your fantasy team.

CJ Spiller: We’ll start with a key one. Looks like Spiller avoided disaster and did not fracture his collarbone, which is great news for his owners (think Ryan Mathews when considering how bad this could have been for Spiller). My guess is he probably severely sprained his Acromioclavicular joint (AC joint), which is where the collar bone and a prominance on your scapula (shoulder blade) meet. This joint is very important for shoulder stability and is what is being referenced when someone “separates” their shoulder. The inital thought is that Spiller will be out 1-2 weeks, but more will be known once his MRI results come back. My guess is that 2-3 weeks seems reasonable as long as it’s not a complete separation. Hold onto him as this is something he will be able to bounce back from, but the timing couldn’t be worse for him. Fred Jackson is said to be progressing very quickly, as he could be back in 2 weeks or so, which means Spiller loses his stranglehold on the starting job if Jackson is good to go. In the short-term, Tashard Choice looks to be the guy.

Reggie Bush: Another worse-case scenario avoided, as reports are he avoided any season-ending type injury. Initial reports say he’ll miss ” a few weeks”, but as with Spiller, more will be known after his MRI delivers more specifics. Probably looking at a ligament sprain, but the time he misses will be determined once they know which structures are involved and how severe the sprains are. We’ll reserve judgment until more info comes out, but it looks like he’s be out at least 2 weeks, my guess being closer to 4 because he’s traditionally been a slow healer and very fragile. Daniel Thomas is the guy in his place, with Lamar Miller being a very deep sleeper.

Ryan Mathews: I’m not including him because he got hurt again, but more because he played a pretty good amount on Sunday and came through just fine. He had 10 carries for 44 yards, which is not impressive by any means, but the Chargers fell behind right off the bat, which doesn’t lend itself to running 20+ times per game. He’s the guy there and there really is no one there challenging him for time, so I think he will have a big week next week now that his workload can continue to be increased. Play him confidently.

Miles Austin: Bruised his ribs after catching a long pass from Tony Romo, left the game to go get X-rays, and came back to finish the game. So the fact that he came back into the game is a good sign. I’m not sure if I’ve just never noticed before, but there seems to be a rash of rib injuries the first 3 weeks of the season. As I’ve stated, it’s a pain tolerance and protection issue if it’s just a bruise, so he should be fine. Monitor the practice reports this week, but I can’t imagine it stops him from playing.

Willis McGahee: See above for my rant on rib injuries, but McGahee also suffered bruised ribs. He actually left the game and didn’t return, which isn’t as promising as with Austin. Ronnie Hillman and Lance Ball would probably be the biggest beneficiary if McGahee can’t go, but remember Knowshon Moreno is also there as well. It’s a murky situation overall though, with so many possible mouths to feed. I’d probably favor Hillman, but it’s anyone’s guess at that point.

Jared Cook: He had a solid game on Sunday, but did suffer an injury to his AC joint (see CJ Spiller above for explanation). Coach Munchak seems confident he will play in Week 4, but wait for the MRI results before deciding. More info should come also from his participation in practice this week.

Beanie Wells: He left Sunday’s game with turf toe, which is a sprain of the big toe of the foot. Knowing his past injury history, he’ll probably be out for about 161 weeks (just an estimate). But in all seriousness, a runner loses his ability to plant and push off when the big toes is sprained, so depending on the severity of the sprain, I can see him missing 2-3 weeks. Ryan Williams ran well in his place and looked healthy, so he’s the pick up in Wells’ place.

Matthew Stafford: Looks like Staff suffered a “right leg muscle” injury, which seemed to look a bit like the hamstring was involved. He’ll have an MRI this week, so we’ll know more then. He actually was reported saying he initially hurt the leg during practice this week and the injury he suffered yesterday was an aggravation. Look for him to play, since he’s not a speed guy and doesn’t rely on his legs, I think he’ll be fine for this week. But we’ll monitor and make sure after more information comes out.

Darrelle Revis: Word is he suffered a pretty severe knee injury, with some saying he possibly tore his ACL, which would be horrendous news for the Jets top defender. MRI is coming this week, but hold your breath and once the severity of the injury comes out, we’ll make a guess at a timetable. Obviously, if he tore the ACL, his season is over. If it’s a sprain of a ligament, the severity of the sprain could cause him to miss anywhere from 2-8 weeks.

Marques Colston: Apparently, this mysterious “foot soreness” he was limited by was plantar fasciitis. What that is is inflammation to the plantar fascia, which runs along the bottom of the foot from the heel to the balls of the toes. Fascia is not elastic and has a tendency to really pull on the surrounding structures when stretched, which makes it very difficulty to push off. If that’s the case, this tends to be an injury that lingers, as resting and letting the fascia revert back to it’s normal length is one major component of the treatment. If he continues to play, expect it to linger for weeks as it SLOWLY gets better.  Doesn’t bode well for Colston owners, so I’d consider seeing if you can unload a depth position on your roster for another WR2/3 just in case.

Jamaal Charles: If you saw his amazing performance on Sunday, you’ll know he wasn’t hurt, so why on earth am I mentioning him here? Well, he’s officially moved well past 1 year post-ACL tear and he looks as close to normal as you could expect. Only thing I wanted to mention was don’t be alarmed if he is limited at all in practice this week because of the significant increase in his workload. This sudden rise can cause some knee soreness, which is completely normal post-ACL. Play him as you normally would because he looks as dynamic as ever.

 

Fred Jackson’s Knee

From all the week 1 injuries, the Fred Jackson is one that stands out to me for two reasons: 1) It couldn’t happen to a nicer guy, and he seems to suffer these types of injuries every year, which really sucks. 2) You hear non-stop about ACLs and MCLs and Menisci, but you rarely, if ever, hear about LCL injuries. I was on Twitter earlier and saw people with many questions about the prognosis and what this really means for him in terms of time off the field. So I wanted to talk a little bit about what the injury is and why the prognosis is so vague.

What is the LCL? The lateral collateral ligament, or LCL, stops the tibia (shin bone) and femur (thigh bone) from separating when someone/thing hits the knee from the inside (think of someone who has their foot planted and another  player rolls into their leg from the inside of the knee). Also, it increases stability of the knee when the thigh bone rotates/twists medially (inside) and the tibia twists laterally. The LCL and MCL combine to maintain the stability of the knee with planting and cutting side to side, with a little help from the ACL. In essence, the LCL is the lateral (outside) stabilizer of the knee. If you search “fred jackson jets” on youtube, you can actually see the mechanism of injury.

Why did Jackson’s MRI come back “inconclusive”? I think part of the reason is because they did the MRI so quickly, which means that the post-injury swelling can still cloud their ability to see the knee itself clearly. When someone has a lot of swelling in the knee (I don’t know if that’s the case with Jackson, but a definite possibility), they really won’t get a firm and accurate diagnosis until the swelling clears. That’s why they went with the standard “out 4 weeks” diagnosis and called it a sprain.

How do they classify a sprain versus a tear? Sprains are little micro tears that happen from trauma or repetitive strain. Tears are classified in three categories:

Grade 1: a minority amount of fibers of the ligament are torn, limiting motion and stability, but you can normally still function with this

Grade 2: usually >50% of the fibers of the ligament are torn, significantly limiting stability and altering function; surgery is not always a given, but can happen on a case by case basis

Grade 3: full tear of all of the fibers of the ligament; surgery is a given (in the athletic population) and it normally takes anywhere from 3-5 months to bounce back from this

If he doesn’t have surgery, what’s the prognosis? This all depends on that MRI and what they find. If it’s a grade 1 tear (see above) and it’s only the LCL that’s involved, he can be back in that 4 week timeframe, maybe 5-6 if they are very conservative.  If it’s a grade 2, he most definitely won’t be back in under 4 weeks and could be out for 6-8 weeks. The thing that complicates matters is that we don’t know if it’s just the LCL that’s involved. Because of the mechanism of injury, he could very well have irritated/sprained/injured the structures on the posterior (back) side of the knee as well, including the Posterior Cruciate Ligament (PCL), Popliteus, and Lateral Meniscus (posterior horn). To put it simply: the more structures that are involved, the longer and more difficult the rehab.

Fantasy Impact: I’d hold onto him until more details come out about the exact injury. If surgery is needed, feel free to drop him because he’ll be out until at least the end of the year and even if he does come back, he won’t be any help to you in the playoffs. Anything else, expect him to be out 6-8 weeks (I’d say closer to 6 than 8, but again, wait for more info), at the minimum, but he should be able to come back and contribute if all goes well. Nevertheless, hopefully you handcuffed him with CJ Spiller or have another guy to fill in until he comes back. This would also be the time to try to unload your depth positions for help at the RB spot.

Update:  So Jackson had an MRI done and it actually came back negative for a tear, as it was reported that he only sprained the lateral collateral ligament. This is definitely great news and it also looked like no other structures were involved. If this is all true, this bumps up his timetable and makes 4 weeks much more reasonable, although I would be hesitant to play him in his first game back against the 49ers spectacular run defense. But good news that he can potentially be back by week 5/6. Jackson himself said they would be performing another MRI in a week or so to determine how the ligament is healing, so be on the look out for more info in the next week.