Key Injuries Looking Forward to Week 4

I have a little time today due to having four wisdom teeth removed on Friday, so here are some of the injuries that may impact your fantasy teams. There will be more information as we receive further reports.

QUARTERBACKS
Player Injured: JP Losman (knee)
Prognosis: Out at least 3 weeks and probably longer
Impact: Rookie Trent Edwards will be the starter. Lee Evans loses overall value, but will not be completely useless as both the Jets and Cowboys give up yards to #1 wide receivers. The Bills have a bye in Week 6.

Player Injured: Jake Delhomme (elbow)
Prognosis: No structural damage. Day-to-day (but aren’t we all?)
Impact: Hello, David Carr. If he can’t go against Tampa, Carr is the guy. Not too much of a fantasy drop-off for Steve Smith.

Player Injured: Jay Cutler (mild ankle sprain)
Prognosis: Uncertain
Impact: Cutler is resilient and his backup Patrick Ramsey moves around the pocket like a person with a chronic ankle sprain. Either way, good luck playing at the Colts next week.

Player Injured: Josh McCown (left foot injury)
Prognosis: Uncertain
Impact: McCown gutted it out until halftime, but Oakland head coach Lane Kiffin opted for Daunte Culpepper. No fantasy drop-offs expected, though the team seemed to operate slightly better with McCown at the controls.

RUNNING BACKS
Player Injured: Brian Westbrook (abdominal strain)
Prognosis: X-rays negative
Impact: Westbrook will be likely listed as questionable and come out to play against the Giants, who will expect him to be at 100%.

Player Injured: Ahman Green (left knee sprain) and Ron Dayne (chest)
Prognosis: Uncertain
Impact: If I am Gary Kubiak, I sit both of these guys down and play Samkon Gado against the hapless Falcons.

Player Injured: Rudi Johnson (hamstring)
Prognosis: Should play next week
Impact: Uh oh. Hamstring injuries don’t go away. The shifty Kenny Watson is the beneficiary of Rudi’s ailments. He won’t benefit too much as the Bengals face New England. Rudi is a trooper though and the extra day to heal will alleviate doubts.

Player Injured: Clinton Portis (?)
Prognosis: Should play after bye week
Impact: Portis limped off the field in the second quarter but returned. His absence on the final drive was curious, though Ladell Betts is a very established backup.

Player Injured: Chester Taylor (hip)
Prognosis: Questionable (like his ability to carry the ball inside the red zone)
Impact: A molester to defenses within the 20s, Taylor’s hip continues to trouble him. Childress could have used Taylor yesterday in the second half to lighten the load for rookie phenom Adrian Peterson.

WIDE RECEIVERS
Player Injured: Hines Ward (bone bruise)
Prognosis: MRI negative. Likely to play in Week 4
Impact: No real impact. The Steelers have had comfortable leads in the second half of each of their games, so that has subtracted from Ward’s fantasy output.

Player Injured: Calvin Johnson (bruised lower back)
Prognosis: Uncertain
Impact: Johnson was poised for a career game when he made an amazing catch that put his condition in doubt. This will improve the fantasy status of Mike Furrey and Shaun McDonald, but may hurt Roy Williams in the rare two-receiver sets.

Player Injured: Jacoby Jones (separated shoulder)
Prognosis: Out at least 2 weeks
Impact: If you’ve seen Jones’s potential, this stinks. Kevin Walter and Jerome Mathis are the only healthy receivers for the Texans. They could sign or trade for a receiver. If they were playing 30 other teams, they’d have no chance this week, but they play the Falcons (and possibly without DeAngelo Hall).

OTHERS
Player Injured: Vernon Davis (sprained right knee)
Prognosis: Will undergo MRI and re-evaluation
Impact: Head coach Mike Nolan is optimistic that Davis is fine, but I’m not optimistic about that offense. The 56 yards gained surpassed his previous output, but it’s pitiful given the camp reports during the pre-season. NEVER read into the pre-season.

Player Injured: Paul Posluzny (arm)
Prognosis: Out for the year
Impact: There goes my defensive rookie of the year pick. He was off to a solid start. This hurts a stout Bills defense that is on the field for long periods of time due to a largely inept offense.

Player Injured: Steve McKinney (torn ACL)
Prognosis: Out for the year
Impact: Houston is competing with Buffalo for the most injuries. McKinney’s injury hurts the depth for an already-thin Texans O-line.