One of the most brutal weekends of NFL injuries in recent memory is forcing a ripple effect to tear through the league in fantasy as we approach Week 9 of the 2015 season.
It’s safe to say that a couple of owners in every league across the fantasy universe are suffering to find stopgap options after the likes of Matt Forte, Le’Veon Bell, Keenan Allen and Steve Smith Sr. went down with serious injuries. There are plenty of others who are trying to fight through injuries, but not all of them will emerge for big outputs this weekend.
With that in mind, let’s look closer into some injured stars and whether they are worth inserting into your lineup or should be sitting on the bench.
Buy: Austin Seferian-Jenkins, TE, Tampa Bay Buccaneers
The Tampa Bay Buccaneers have been without tight end Austin Seferian-Jenkins—rookie quarterback Jameis Winston’s security blanket—for over a month, as he hasn’t played since Week 2. But his impending return to the lineup should have Winston looking his way early and often.
The 23-year-old tight end is bound to return to the lineup in Week 9, and it’s safe to say his quarterback is excited to have him back, as Scott Smith of Buccaneers.com reported:
Even without Seferian-Jenkins and Vincent Jackson as of late, Winston has evolved into a much more dangerous player on offense. Struggling to find consistency through the air with Mike Evans, expect the Bucs to feature Seferian-Jenkins regularly in Week 9 against a New York Giants team fresh off giving up seven touchdown passes to New Orleans Saints quarterback Drew Brees.
Sell: Rueben Randle, WR, New York Giants
The Giants and Eli Manning dominated through the air last weekend, but Rueben Randle somehow didn’t get in on the action. He barely caught over half of his nine targets for just 55 yards, failing to get into the end zone.
Without a score in his last four games, don’t expect Randle to break into the end zone this weekend against the Bucs. Randle appears on the Giants’ injury report for Week 9 with a hamstring injury—the type of setback that can really limit what a receiver can do offensively.
Buy: Dion Lewis, RB, New England Patriots
Were you one of the folks who shied away from Dion Lewis last Thursday night after he missed the previous game with an abdomen injury and was limited all week in practice? Man, do I feel sorry for you.
Lewis emerged as a game-time decision against the Miami Dolphins to absolutely dominate, catching six passes for 93 yards and a touchdown. Despite only getting five carries, Lewis once again proved he doesn’t need touches out of the backfield to put up big numbers.
The Pats face the Washington Redskins in a lopsided Week 9 contest, so expect Lewis to feast once again.
Sell: Davante Adams, WR, Green Bay Packers
The sky-high early-season expectations in fantasy for Davante Adams quickly faded when an ankle injury kept him out for over a month, but his return to the lineup in Week 8 against the Denver Broncos was supposed to be his first opportunity to dazzle. Well, he didn’t.
Adams caught one pass for eight yards against the Broncos. He has 10 catches for 100 yards on the season, the types of numbers fantasy owners hoped he would put up in a single game—not in four games of action.
Some of his struggles can be attributed to playing the stifling Denver secondary, but he and quarterback Aaron Rodgers face a similarly daunting secondary in Week 9 against the Carolina Panthers. Shy away from Adams until you see him put up the numbers we expected before the season started.
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