I felt Monday that the 4-6 week estimates some put on Randall Cobb were optimistic and that a 6-8+ week recovery was the most likely timetable. The Packers may have been feeling the same today and put Cobb on the injured reserve / designated to return list. Without knowing precisely where Cobb's injury is, it's difficult to know whether he can come back and be immediately productive during your fantasy playoffs. For now, it seems he's avoided surgery and that's an optimistic sign. But I think you can consider him in the Michael Crabtree category right now -- likely to see only a fraction of his usual workload immediately upon his return and probably not worthy of a playoff lineup slot.
I'm still getting questions on Percy Harvin via email and Twitter. His rehab and recovery still look to be going better than expected. There's a good chance he returns to practice next week. He will not be a viable fantasy starter until Week 9 or 10 (at the earliest) but the buzz will pick up significantly next week. If he's on the free agent list in your league, now's the time to move on him.
INSIDE THE INJURY REPORT
Calvin Johnson | knee | limited
Any practice participation on Wednesday is a good sign for Johnson, but don't be fully reassured yet. The Lions still haven't given more than the vaguest of updates on Johnson's condition. The best case scenario includes Johnson putting in a full practice this week, but that's unlikely. Last Sunday morning brought a confusing set of pregame reports on Johnson. Be prepared for the same this week.
Rob Gronkowski | arm | limited
The peripheral news reports on Gronkowski are more interesting by the week, but his practice participation remains numbingly similar. For a full account of my thoughts on the soap opera surrounding Gronkowski and why nothing seems to add up, see this Monday's column. Otherwise, as frustrating as it is, the bottom line continues to be that you cannot count on Gronkowski as a fantasy option until he tells reporters he's returning and he's on the active roster on gameday. Whether that will be this week is something only Gronkowski himself knows.
Marshawn Lynch | hip | probable
Lynch was not limited by what appears to be a minor hip injury this week and he's listed probable for Thursday night's game. It's not clear whether Lynch has a muscle strain or contusion, but it appears his risk for an aggravation is low. He's safe to use in fantasy lineups.
Roddy White | high ankle sprain / hamstring strain | DNP
White reportedly was struggling to move around in the locker room yesterday, nearly ten days after his last game action. Though I expect he'll continue to push the limits of his recovery to extend his consecutive games streak, the combination of his still healing high ankle sprain and a new low-mid grade hamstring injury may finally prove to much for him to overcome. If he does play, he's unlikely to be effective and he continues to push his body ever closer to a even longer term cascade injury.
C.J. Spiller | ankle sprain | DNP
I'd like to be more positive on Spiller, but until we see him back to a full practice or looking consistently effective in an extended workload (15+ touches), he will continue to be a high variance play. It's not reassuring that Spiller is not practicing on Wednesday, but neither does it imply that his injury is worse than before. The Bills are -- hopefully -- just managing his early week snaps. Assuming he increases his practice participation as the week progresses, he'll be safe to consider a high variance RB2 play again this week.
Larry Fitzgerald | hamstring strains | probable
The first reports out of the Arizona locker room last week weren't at all reassuring for Fitzgerald, but he fully practiced on Tuesday and is listed probable for Thursday night's game. He may have as many as three different areas of injured muscle, including strains to both legs, so there's still a serious risk of further aggravation. The matchup against the Seattle secondary is also worrisome. It's hard to bench Fitzgerald, but give it some thought if you have another top 25 option.
Danny Amendola | concussion / groin strains | DNP
We won't hear anything on Amendola until Friday. Though we've seen a small handful of players cleared to practice sooner than the usual five day return to exercise protocol dictates, it's very unlikely that happens in New England. The Friday practice report will tell the tale on Amendola. If he's limited or better, he'll have an excellent shot at playing. If he's a DNP, he's out. Don't read too much into the loss of consciousness Amendola looked to have sustained last week. That's not a clear sign that his head injury will be treated with more caution. His return ultimately depends on how quickly his symptoms resolve.
James Jones | PCL sprain | DNP
Jones reportedly has a low grade PCL sprain and the Packers have been hopeful that Jones can return to play this week. But athletes rarely feel their knee is fully stable within 4-5 days of even a low grade PCL injury. As optimistic as Jones has been, if he feels looseness in his knee while cutting at the end of the week, he won't be able to go. I think Week 8 is the more likely return date and would even argue that it's more likely that Jones waits until Week 9 to play than suits up this weekend. If Jones does play, it's an excellent sign and he'll be worthy of his usual boom-bust WR2 tiering.
DeMarco Murray | MCL sprain | DNP
Some skill position players and defenders have played effectively the week after sustaining a low grade MCL sprain. The list is short, however, and it's particularly difficult for a running back who will put a lot of stress on the inside of his knee when cutting. I think it's unlikely Murray practices this week and Week 8 is the soonest we'll see him return.
Cecil Shorts | SC sprain | DNP
The sternoclavicular sprain suffered by Shorts this weekend is reportedly low grade and not associated with any instability in the joint. That's good news for Shorts. Multiple players have had this injury in the past two seasons -- you can read more detail on the injury in my posts on Ben Roethlisberger and Danny Amendola -- but they have had higher grade injuries. However, there's no easy way to brace this injury or control the pain Shorts will feel when lifting his arm away from his body over the next 1-3 weeks. I don't expect this to be a long term injury, but it will be extremely surprising to see Shorts return to play this Sunday.
Michael Vick | hamstring strain | limited
On paper, Vick's practice participation over the past seven days looks promising. But he won't play this weekend. The initial reports on Vick's injury called it a minimum 1-2 week strain and Vick himself said this week that it'll take at least another week to feel comfortable running with what he called a "pretty good pull." By next week -- if we aren't there already -- Nick Foles may be a bigger threat to Vick's return than the hamstring strain.
Justin Blackmon | groin / hamstring strain | DNP
Blackmon isn't practicing with multiple muscle strains of his legs, but there's been no indication that he won't be able to play this weekend. As long as there's no setbacks in his practice participation this week, he should be a trustworthy WR2+ this week.
Matt Schaub | leg | DNP
The Texans won't rule out Schaub this week, but I will. Gary Kubiak never shows all his cards on player injuries and this situation is no exception. But the mechanism of Schaub's injury was clear. He's apparently been lucky enough to avoid a fibular fracture, but I'd be very surprised if he doesn't have at least a mid-grade high ankle injury. Week 9 (the Texans have a bye next week) is the soonest we'll see Schaub.
AROUND THE TRAINING TABLE
Steve Johnson and Mike Williams both missed last week's game after some early week optimism. We're hearing the early week optimism again on both, but still haven't been given any specifics on their current injury. There may be no concern here and both could increase their practice participation smoothly. But both will be serious risks due to injury and quarterback situation this week.
Jake Locker and EJ Manuel are both making good progress in their rehab from serious leg injuries. But neither are yet close to returning. We could see Locker shortly after the Titans' Week 8 bye. Manuel will take a little longer to return, with most recent estimates suggesting he'll miss another month as he regains stability after his high grade PCL injury.
I'm not sure why there continues to be optimism on Jonathan Stewart. Just because he was eligible to come off the PUP list and practice this week didn't mean it was likely. Given the prolonged rehab and recovery he's had from February surgery, it would've been more surprising to hear he was ready for contact this week than not. He's still feeling soreness in his ankle apparently and I think it's fair to wonder if he'll be able to run comfortably at any point this season. There's a bigger buffer built into the PUP rules this year, however, so it's still worth tracking his progress. But don't get your hopes up again.
Follow on Twitter @JeneBramel for breaking injury news, updates and analysis. Check back Sunday morning for my expectations on Rob Gronkowski, Calvin Johnson, Danny Amendola and this week's other game-time injury decisions.
