It's time for Week 8 Injury Analysis. Not a lot of significant injuries to report so will devote much of this blog to providing some updates on injuries to key players from previous weeks.
Greg Jennings: Weeks ago I had told my readers to be cautious of playing Jennings until he proved he was recovered from his groin injury as this injury can be nagging for many weeks and when he had a setback, I became even more concerned. Well now that cat is out of the bag and we find out that Jennings injury to his groin is actually where it attaches proximally at the pubic bone and is actually a sports hernia. Unlike a typical hernia, there is no protrusion of bowel into the inguinal canal. Although regarded as one of the more trickier injuries with different surgical techniques being used, overall most players are able to return to their prior level of activity although different timetables have been reported. The Green Bay camp is stating Jennings will be ready in 3 weeks, well we already know that is not going to happen since Hurricane Sandy is postponing Jennings surgery until next week. Even without nature impacting the scheduling, for Jennings to return to a high level in the NFL which involves twisting and cutting movements, I think to return in just 3 weeks postoperatively would be very unlikely. I think closer to 6 weeks is a more appropriate timetable and even if he does return sooner, I think it will be at least those 6 weeks before he is used as a #1 receiver and playing consistently as he was prior to his injury.
What does all this mean to your fantasy football team? Randall Cobb, James Jones, and Jordy Nelson (if healthy) are all players who should be considered as good options on your fantasy roster. Not sure what to really expect from Jennings on your roster, I guess you can hope for maybe some use in your fantasy playoffs?
Jordy Nelson: Nelson has already missed 1 game now with a hamstring injury. These injuries are on a spectrum that can really range from mild usually causing a player to miss some practices and maybe 1 game, to really being a significant injury to the muscle or even worse to the proximal tendon in the area of the buttocks that can cause a player to miss significant time. Additionally, with more significant injuries the healing that occurs does not restore the full integrity of the muscle/tendon and can leave the hamstring more susceptible to reinjury which is why you may hear about a player's past history of "hamstring problems" as they may have a tendency to reinjure it from time to time which takes longer than to recover from. We will have to wait and see how Nelson does with practicing and see how conservative the Packers want to be especially since this seemed to leave Jennings with a reaggravated groin and now on the shelf needing surgery when the attempting to return after missing only 1 game initially.
What does all this mean to your fantasy football team? If healthy, he will be Rodgers' #1 target so he's definitely worth having or even worth trying to look for a good trade if one's out there in your league but I wouldn't start him this upcoming week given the risk of having him be a bust in your lineup if he suffers a setback or if they are cautious with him. Stay tuned.
Jake Locker: You could tell that when the Titans were being secretive about Locker's injury but then said he definitely won't be back for the next game that some there was something going on that was more significant than just a shoulder separation or a dislocated shoulder. We now are finding out that he also had a fracture, was this a fractured acromion or a fracture of the anterior portion of the glenoid? Either way, bone healing takes a good 6-8 weeks so this better explains why he's been out for several weeks. Looks like he still has a few more weeks before we can expect him back in the lineup.
What does all this mean to your fantasy football team? I'm sure he'll be available to pick up in your league when he comes back if you are in desperate need of a QB but ultimately I don't think this should affect your team too much but may play a bigger role regarding how you feel Chris Johnson does with these two different quarterbacks in the saddle.
DeMarco Murray: Murray continues to recover from a midfoot sprain in which he's missed each of the last 2 weeks. I think expecting him to return this week is too optimistic and would once again be cautious in starting him until he has practiced in full without any problems and may even advise not starting him until he can play in a game again without a setback.
What does all this mean to your fantasy football team? It's a rough road back from midfoot sprains so either be patient or try to trade him while there's still hope for a return as this could potentially turn into one of those lingering injuries that leave us looking back on a disappointing 2012-13 season for Murray….that is if it already hasn't been one.
Maurice Jones-Drew: MJD's injury is not changing or getting better. He shouldn't be counted on to be back in the next several weeks.
What does all this mean to your fantasy football team? Take that information and decide how you want to apply it to your league.
Follow me on Twitter @DoctorKenton for more updates/injury analysis in the upcoming games this week.
Wishing all your players quick recoveries,
DoctorKenton