Even fantasy playoff owners have to deal with injuries.

Despite only eight teams playing this weekend, you had to know that someone major was going to blow up a fantasy playoff team by leaving early with an injury. And it happened twice on Saturday.

First, Anquan Boldin owners watched as Q blew past the Falcons’ secondary on his way to a 71-yard touchdown reception, only to pull up lame after reaching paydirt. Then, in the late game, LaDainian Tomlinson suited up despite not practicing all week and started things off with a 13-yard run on the Chargers’ first play. Other than a goal line touchdown, which saved his fantasy value, LT’s performance was overshadowed by teammate Darren Sproles, who replaced Tomlinson at running back late in the second quarter.

Lucky for fantasy owners that both guys scored a touchdown before exiting the games. But both Boldin and Tomlinson could have had much better fantasy stat lines had they been able to stick around. Continue reading →

The final weekend of the 2008 NFL regular season was not without its share of drama.

From playoff scenarios shaking out all over the league to stud starters taking a breather, week 17 was just a microcosm of the entire 2008 campaign. And in between those two extremes were, of course, a few costly injuries.

But first, a couple of studly running backs returned in week 17 to pedestrian territory. Marion Barber came in healthy-ish against the Eagles but was held in check by a tenacious defense. Even worse for the Cowboys, Barber put the ball on the turf inside the Eagles’ five-yard line in the 3rd quarter, which resulted in the ball being returned 96 yards for a Philly touchdown. If the game was not over at that point, Barber’s fumble surely was the coup de gras.

Frank Gore also returned to action for the 49ers in a meaningless game. He started ahead of DeShaun Foster but was vultured of a touchdown by quarterback Shaun Hill early in the contest and later supplanted by Foster. The good news here is that Gore did not reinjure his gimpy ankle and should be able to make a full recovery before the start of mini-camps. Continue reading →

Bad weather and injuries took its toll on fantasy owners during Championship weekend.

From snow and wind in New England to below freezing temperatures just about everywhere else, Sunday’s weather joined forces with the typical slew of weekly injuries to present the ultimate hurdle to fantasy owners seeking that ever-elusive fantasy championship.

Watching your fantasy players get dominated by the elements is just as bad as watching them get owned by a good defense. Kurt Warner, for example, drew a pretty favorable match up against a suspect New England secondary in week 16. But Mother Nature had other plans for Warner and the Cardinals’ passing game, which struggled mightily in the snow and wind.

The frustration for Warner owners was three-fold: First, he was terrible (6-of-18 for 30 yards). Then he got yanked in the third quarter for Matt Leinart, who went on to throw a bomb touchdown to Larry Fitzgerald despite a few turnovers of his own. And finally, the Patriots passing game was superb in the snow, amassing 343 yards and three scores.

So to sum up, maybe it was not so much about the elements. But it makes for a good excuse for Warner owners. Continue reading →

By 2008 standards, yesterday was a relatively quiet day on the injury front.

But several big fantasy names took a back seat in week 15 due to lingering injury concerns. Frank Gore seemed optimistic early in the week after spraining his ankle last weekend but was unable to go. Brandon Jacobs was ruled out of last night’s game by the end of last week, which could be a sign that the Giants plan to play it safe with him the rest of the way.

And in the “I told you so” department, Marion Barber played and was, well, pretty ineffective. That toe injury is much worse than the Cowboys are letting on and the chances of him having a significant fantasy line next week against Baltimore are slim-to-none.

That brings us to Reggie Bush. How disappointing it must be for Bush’s fantasy owners to see him get going in week 14 against Atlanta only to fall flat on his face this week against Chicago. The hangover from that loss is gone at this point, but I know Bush left a sour taste in fantasy owners mouths after a dismal performance in a must-win fantasy weekend. Continue reading →

Running backs were dropping like flies in week 14 of the NFL regular season.

Marion Barber started the landslide when Dallas left him in Texas for yesterday’s game against Pittsburgh. Brandon Jacobs, Frank Gore and Peyton Hillis then followed suit, each leaving their respective games with injuries of varying severities.

In Barber’s absence, however, a waiver wire star was born. Rookie running back Felix Jones Tashard Choice blew up Pittsburgh’s defense to everyone’s suprise. Choice posted 166 yards of total offense on 28 touches (23 carries, five receptions). He was held out of the endzone, but those totals are awfully impressive against the Steelers defense.

At least one of the backup running backs for the Giants is a must-own for Jacobs’ owners. Derrick Ward and Ahmad Bradshaw have been floating around waiver wires for most of the year, with Bradshaw being the most likely to be on your wire.

Tatum Bell ran decently for Denver after Hillis’ departure, but the game fell mostly on Jay Cutler’s shoulders. DeShaun Foster, meanwhile, did not run well in Gore’s absence and is only an option for very desperate Gore owners still in contention. Continue reading →

This NFL season has seen its share of injuries. From minor hamstring pulls to season-ending knee injuries to career-threatening head injuries and everything in between, the 2008 injury bug season has been one of the busiest on record.

But week 13’s injury report is highlighted by one highly-consequential, completely irresponsible mishap. By now, everyone knows that Plaxico Burress accidentally discharged his firearm into his leg at a New York City nightclub. Luckily for Burress, the bullet missed any major arteries and he is expected to make a full recovery.

I say the mishap was highly-consequential not because it matters much to the success of the Giants. New York has proven to be effective on offense with or without Burress in the lineup, including during yesterday’s performance against Washington. But it is a consequential injury because it likely will keep Burress sidelined for the rest of this season. That is bad news for his fantasy owners but even worse news for Burress himself, who could be looking for a new job in offseason if he can avoid jail time.

And that brings me to the completely irresponsible part. Well, I think the circumstances of the injury speak for themselves. Burress has been in and out of trouble all season long culminating in this weekend’s unfortunate-but-probably-preventable mishap. I do hope he makes a full recovery, but more than that I hope this event injects a little maturity into Burress’ destructive attitude. Continue reading →

Let the bodies hit the floor … let the bodies hit the floor … let the bodies the FLOOR!!!

The wear-and-tear associated with the NFL regular season continues to take its toll on the bodies of the players around the league. It is getting harder and harder to keep up with all these casualties.

For those of you hoping to use Saints’ runningback Reggie Bush tonight, Fox’s Jay Glazer is reporting that Bush will be inactive due the the knee injury he suffered several weeks ago on a punt return against the Panthers. Bush owners could plug either Deuce McAllister or Pierre Thomas into their starting lineups if need be, with Thomas getting the start for New Orleans.

The Saints (5-5), meanwhile, must beat Green Bay (5-5) tonight to stay in the NFC Wild Card race. So that says a whole lot about Bush’s health, that he would not suit up for arguably the most important game of the season.

Elsewhere on Sunday, a number of fantasy stars took a seat due to injury. Hit the jump for all the updates. Continue reading →

Clinton Portis had his fantasy owners worried sick all week long that he might miss last night’s Cowboys - Redskins clash or that he was only 50-50 to play or that if he played he would be limited.

As if.

Portis started and played pretty well for the ‘Skins and his fantasy owners. Did anyone really think he would miss this, of all, games?

As a Portis owner in a dynasty league, it was good to see him running around last night despite being a little hobbled. He is a tough guy and the centerpiece of the Washington running game, one of the last of a dying breed: The non-RBBC. While in the past he had shared some carries with teammate Ladell Betts, Portis now is the main cog in the wheel of Washington’s running game.

I am not sure how good that team would be without his talents this season, as he is having a career year. And it has been doubly as lucrative for his fantasy owners, so light a candle for his continued good health for the rest of the season. Continue reading →

Ssssshhh! Be very, very quiet. I’m hunting wabbits. The injury bug is asleep.

It seemed that way for most of the day on Sunday. There were minor injuries galore and a few big names withheld from action, but most of the fantasy stars in the league avoided the major injury yesterday.

Unfortunately, the same cannot be said for the New Orleans Saints. It seemed like the Saints had a player limping off the field on just about every play. Included in that group was none other than the oft-injured Jeremy Shockey, who turned an ankle. The Saints are calling it a sprained ankle, but Shockey should be OK.

Speaking of those players withheld from action, Steven Jackson was again missing from the Rams’ lineup on Sunday. A lingering quad injury continues to keep SJax out of fantasy lineups, frustrating his fantasy owners. There also is speculation already that Jackson may miss at least another week.

Three other scratches from yesterday’s action headline today’s MMR. Hit the jump for the updates. Continue reading →

The injury bug came back in full force this weekend.

A slew of minor and major injuries hit fantasy owners like a mid-summer’s heatwave. From illness to gruesome lower leg injuries and everything in between, no one was safe from the injury epidemic in week 9.

Even those players who managed to escape the inactive list after battling injuries throughout the week were severely hampered on Sunday. Baltimore’s Willis McGahee was active and with helmet on the sidelines, but never set foot on the field against Cleveland. He watched as Ray Rice and Le’Ron McClain dominated the Browns’ defense on the ground.

Dallas tight end Jason Witten suited up despite the broken rib he suffered last weekend. But that did not mean too much because neither of Dallas’ quarterbacks — Brad Johnson and Brooks Bollinger — could get him the ball. And he did not look all too comfortable out there in the first place.

Hit the jump for the rest of the weekend’s casualties. Continue reading →