Week 9 Injury/Depth Chart Report

I have decided to start writing this article on Fridays.  There have been some weeks that I have forgotten to update it on Friday, so this will solve that problem.


Arizona Cardinals - Anquan Boldin re-injured his ankle in week 8, but is again trying to work his way into the lineup.  He'll likely be on snap count, and he'll again be a very risky fantasy start.  Steve Breaston is a stronger play with Boldin's limiting injury.

Atlanta Falcons - Roddy White has been very limited in practice all week, but he is expected to start in week 9.  Check the game day inactives to make sure.

Baltimore Ravens - None.

Buffalo Bills - Bye week.

Carolina Panthers - Jonathan Stewart owners should know the drill by now.  He misses some practice time, gets listed as questionable, and then plays on Sundays.  He's in no danger of missing week 9.

Cincinnati Bengals - Chris Henry says he feels much better coming out of the bye, but he's only a situational player in a WR rotation across from Chad Ochocinco.  He's always a decent bet to score being the great red zone target that he is, but he's very risky thanks to a lack of yardage.

Chicago Bears - Devin Hester is battling a sprained ankle, but all indications are that he will be ready in week 9.  Check the game day inactives just to be sure.

Cleveland Browns - Bye week.

Dallas Cowboys - Roy Williams continues to run his mouth by stating that he's still the Cowboys #1 receiver.  The dude is just straight stupid.

Denver Broncos - Much like with Cincy and Ochocinco, the use a WR rotation opposite Brandon Marshall, making all other WRs worthless.

Detroit Lions - Mathew Stafford, Kevin Smith, and Calvin Johnson all practiced this week and the beat reporters expect all of them to play.  There's been a lot of talk about Kevin Smith losing some of his playing time, but he's still a strong RB2 thanks to his receiving value and goal line RB status.  Don't lose faith until you actually see him losing carries when he's healthy.

Green Bay Packers - Their offensive line is finally getting healthy with Chad Clifton expected to return, and Mark Tauscher as well.  Hopefully this will open up the deep ball moving forward.  Donald Driver has been missing practice time with a stinger, but all indications are that he will start in week 9.  Check the game day inactives to make sure.

Houston Texans - Joel Dreesen will replace Owen Daniels at TE, but he's not a fantasy option at this time.  You could try stashing him to see what happens if you are desperate at TE.  The main beneficiary here is Kevin Walter...make sure he is owned in all leagues, and he's a sneaky WR3 this week.  He has taken a back seat to Daniels so far this season, but I expect him to come on down the stretch this year as the new #2 option opposite Andre Johnson.  Expect more of what he did last season.

Indianapolis Colts - Anthony Gonzalez is rumored to not be done for the season quite yet, but to be unproductive for the rest of the season whenever he does return.  I've had him stashed for a while in one league, but I have finally cut bait.  He can safely be dropped for better options like the aforementioned Kevin Walter, or Malcolm Floyd if he slipped through waivers.

Jacksonville Jaguars - None.

Kansas City Chiefs - Jamaal Charles will start for Larry Johnson this week, and his performance in this game will go a long way to determining what role he'll have over the rest of the season.

Miami Dolphins - The Dolphins are employing a full WR rotation right now, and given their ineffective passing attack, it's pretty obvious that nobody is even worth owning, much less starting.

Minnesota Vikings - Bye week.

New England Patriots - Sammy Morris is still out, so Maroney will once again start.  He's again a risky RB2 with upside.  If he's ineffective, expect Benjarvis Green-Ellis to take over carries.

New Orleans Saints - There is a full RB rotation in effect here as Reggie Bush received a goal line carry on a toss play last week, and Pierre Thomas was in near the goal line to take a sweep-style screen pass into the end zone as well.  Pierre Thomas is currently the best start here among the 3 for yardage purposes, but Bell will get his including the normal goal line runs, and Bush will make appearances as well.

New York Giants - Eli Manning is still not 100% and needs to remain on benches.  Odds are this strategy will force you to miss he rebound game, assuming he has one, but there's been no indication since his injury that he's ready to be your QB1 again.  Jacobs has taken the majority role in the backfield thanks to his more effective running over the past 3 weeks, but Bradshaw will continue to take some carries.  Bradshaw is no longer an RB2 candidate with the current carry split.  Hakeem Nicks started last week thanks to Manningham's injury, but Manningham is expected to play this week.  Whether or not he resumes starting probably won't be known until game time, but Nicks is a WR3 possibility as he continues to excel on the field.

New York Jets - Bye week.

Oakland Raiders - Bye week.

Philadelphia Eagles - Brian Westbrook will return this week and resume his committee role, although expect him to see more touches than LeSean McCoy.  Maclin will start the rest of the season opposite DeSean Jackson.

Pittsburgh Steelers - Parker claims he's feeling 100%, but this is Mendenhall's job to lose.  Mendenhall looked great in his breakout game, but he hasn't received more than 17 carries in a game since then, although he's been averaging almost 5 yards a carry with those totes.  This can be attributed to the new no-huddle, pass-first offense the Steelers have been employing recently.  If they can get a lead to nurse, expect Mendenhall to be huge in the 4th quarter.

San Diego Chargers - Malcolm Floyd has replaced Chris Chambers as the starting WR, and he's a good WR3 moving forward.

San Francisco 49ers - None.

Seattle Seahawks - Expect Justin Forsett to finally see some more touches this week at the expense of Julius Jones.  Neither are worth using, however.

St. Louis Rams - Bye week.

Tampa Bay Buccaneers - Fantasy wasteland.

Tennessee Titans - Young will look to build off of his success of last week, but until he establishes a comfort zone with his WRs, they are poor fantasy bets thanks to their likely lack of yardage.

Washington Redskins - I hope you've dealt Clinton Portis already, and you should also consider dealing Santana Moss as well.  This offense is hurting in a bad way, and there's no reason to think it will get better this season.  As is, Portis is an OK RB2, and Moss is only a match up WR3.