We scour the news around the NFL to bring you what matters most for you and your dynasty team: the most current news on players, both superstars and the relative unknowns, and analysis to decipher the respective situations.
Multiple reports Sunday had Green Bay Packers star passer Aaron Rodgers taking a conservative path back to action. This was after the Packers passer told ESPN on Thursday that he expects to play in week fourteen. For a refresher, Rodgers has a fractured collarbone and has thrown the ball in practice. The worry is that a big hit could re-injure the collarbone. However, Green Bay has their backs to the wall after the blowout loss to Detroit on Thanksgiving Day. The good news is that the Packers play the Falcons in week fourteen so the quarterback may wish to wait another week. But, he needs to get healthy before Green Bay travels to Dallas to play the Cowboys in week fifteen.
Mike Silver was the first to report that the Indianapolis Colts were going to bench ineffective tailback Trent Richardson. Richardson has been an unquestioned bust since his acquisition from Cleveland. Donald Brown got the start against the Tennessee Titans on Sunday. Indianapolis yielded a first round pick for Richardson – and he was effective as a Cleveland Brown – so there is hope that the Colts will look for ways to best utilize his skill set. In the meantime, Brown is the lone running back in Indianapolis worth inserting into fantasy football lineups.
The South Florida Sun-Sentinel reported that Dolphins running back Daniel Thomas is done for the season with torn ligaments in his left ankle. Miami will not miss Thomas and it will force the stubborn Dolphins coaching staff to give Lamar Miller more touches. Rookie Mike Gillislee will step into the backup role. Marcus Thigpen will also see touches going forward.
Many NFL Draft pundits thought more of Green Bay Packers rookie tailback Johnathan Franklin than fellow rookie Eddie Lacy. Franklin suffered a concussion in week twelve and was not cleared to return before being placed on injured reserve late last week. Franklin was a star at UCLA and offers a great skill set to offset the strengths of Lacy. Thankfully, Green Bay is deep at the position.
Dallas Cowboys change of pace back Lance Dunbar had a coming out party against the Oakland Raiders on Thanksgiving Day. He injured his left knee in the game. The original diagnosis was a hyperextended knee, but later confirmed to be a torn posterior lateral corner. Dunbar was a great complement to Demarco Murray for the Dallas running game. Now, the fear is that is the oft-injured Murray gets nicked up, only rookie Joseph Randle and Phillip Tanner are left to carry the rock.
Even though there have been conflicting reports, we are inclined to agree with the Ian Rapoport report that Seattle Seahawks receiver Percy Harvin has suffered a setback. Harvin missed practice on Thursday and Friday as the hip suffered inflammation. This is definitely a story to monitor. Rapoport had a follow up report before the Monday night game in which he threw out the idea that Seattle may hold Harvin out of action until the playoffs. The situation is getting dicey for dynasty owners.
New England Patriots rookie receiver Aaron Dobson was mysteriously out of practice with an injury. MassLive.com was one of the first to report the injury was a sprained foot. This has the look of a multi-week injury and the Patriots could hold the first-year pass catcher out until the playoffs. Kenbrell Thompkins replaced Dobson in the lineup against the Texans but he, too, was injured. Thompkins hurt his hip in the contest. These two injuries allowed Danny Amendola and Josh Boyce to see the field more in the second half versus Houston.
The Cincinnati Enquirer ran a report last week quoting Bengals offensive coordinator Jay Gruden in regard to his receiving corps, especially Marvin Jones, Mohamed Sanu, and Andrew Hawkins. Gruden said, “They’ve all shown flashes of being very good … It's just we have a lot of guys that are kind of in that mode where a different guy can help us each week, that it might not be the same guy each week." This just means that none of the group has emerged to take hold of the starting job. When there is a committee at a position, it just means there is no defined starter.
Fantasy owners were very surprised when Washington tight end Jordan Reed was not active for the Sunday Night Football contest against the Giants. Reed was thought to play but the team ruled him out after suffering a headache before the game, according to Adam Schefter. This was the second consecutive missed game due to the effects of a concussion suffered in week twelve.
The St. Paul Pioneer Press quoted Minnesota Vikings coach as saying he expects tight end Kyle Rudolph back in practice this week. Rudolph broke his foot a few weeks ago and will likely need another week to get back to speed.
The Houston Chronicle reported that Texans tight end Owen Daniels looks to be behind schedule in his recovery from a right fibula fracture. Daniels has yet to make it back to practice. With the worst record in the league, why would Houston rush the veteran back? It is expected that the team will look much different in 2014 with a possible new coaching staff and starting quarterback.
NBC Washington was the first to report that Washington tight end Fred Davis missed meetings the past couple of weeks. This is a few weeks after the veteran tight end admitted to dozing off in team meetings. It is amazing that a veteran player, in the last year of his contract and looking for a payday in the offseason, misses – and sleeps through – team meetings. He is costing himself much money.
Injuries to monitor this week:
Michael Vick: Hamstring
Jay Cutler: Ankle
Aaron Rodgers: Collarbone
E.J. Manuel: Knee
Darren McFadden: Hamstring
Michael Crabtree: Achilles
Percy Harvin: Hip
Jordan Reed: Concussion
Jimmy Graham: Foot
Dennis Pitta: Hip
Kyle Rudolph: Foot
Feel free to email me (Tefertiller@Footballguys.com) with feedback. Also, I am on Twitter (www.Twitter.com/JeffTefertiller), LinkedIn, and Google+, so you can ask me questions on one of these as well.
