Empty the Bench

- There were a couple of updates in the ongoing Travis Henry saga this week that should have his owners coming in off the ledge. He’s still likely to miss the end of the season, but it appears he won’t be suspended for over a month and he may even have a slim chance to finish the campaign. Adam Schefter told Rich Eisen on Friday that the NFL has yet to even suspend Henry. Once they do so, Henry will have five days to contest the suspension, then a hearing date will have to be set. After the hearing, it would take 2-3 weeks to get the results handed down. So if he’s even suspended, it will be over a month before it goes into effect.

On top of that, Henry is engaged in a lawsuit to prevent a suspension from even occurring. He’s volunteered to submit a hair sample and take a polygraph test in order to prove that the results from the positive test were due to second-hand smoke (his friends must have been having quite a time), and traveled to New York on Monday to do so. He also contends that the test is moot because he was denied representation provided for in the Collective Bargaining Agreement. Selvin Young is still an excellent backup to own, but it looks like it’ll be some time before he’s a starter.

- Indianapolis Colts stars Joseph Addai and Marvin Harrison were both held out of practice on Wednesday after missing Sunday’s game, but it’s nothing to be concerned about. HC Tony Dungy said it was just a precautionary measure. They’re going into the bye week and Dungy indicated earlier this week that both would have played on Sunday if it had been a must-win game. Count on having your studs back and ready to rock in Week 7.

- Atlanta Falcons starting LT Wayne Gandy will miss the remainder of the season with a torn ACL. That means stud DE Osi Umenyiora will face off against undrafted rookie Renardo Foster in front of a national audience on Monday Night Football. We saw what Umenyiora did against the superior Winston Justice two weeks ago, recording 6 sacks, so he should absolutely destroy Foster. This gives the Giants DEF a major upgrade (our Sneaky Play of the Week, by the way). Be sure to have Umenyiora active in IDP leagues, and downgrade Joey Harrington and the Falcons receivers even more, if that’s possible.

- Depending on who you ask, Michael Pittman either suffered a broken fibula or “a pretty good sprain.” Either way, he’s expectd to miss the next 6-8 weeks. That leaves rookie Earnest Graham as the Bucs unquestioned starter unless they manage to pull off a move for a legitimate RB. Signing veteran Zack Crockett today doesn’t count. Graham is worth owning in all leagues, and his good size should ensure he’s the goal-line back, too. He’ll be a strong flex play against all but the best defenses for the foreseeable future, and has juicy matchups in
Weeks 7, 9, 11, 13, 15 and 16.

- Well, I traded personal favorite Donald Driver to Brian for Anquan Boldin and Najeh “Dumpy” Davenport last week. It was a must-win game for Brian, and I felt that the Cards had a better schedule ahead, that Boldin would return this week from the hip strain, and that Davenport was a worthwhile lottery ticket in case the overused Willie Parker were injured. A fair deal all around.

I was feeling pretty smart on Sunday when Davenport took two to the house, but after Boldin missed another practice Wednesday I’m downright nervous. In passing last week Anquan said that he wanted to make sure this didn’t cause him to miss the rest of the season. Good, me too. But this hip injury is suddenly sounding more and more serious. There’s not much fantasy owners can do at this point but hope; Arizona has one of the most fantasy-friendly schedules in the NFL from here on out. And while the Cardinals were expected to throw a lot less than they did under Dennis Green, they’ve actually throw more this season (36.2 passes a game, 5th in the NFL). With the competent Kurt Warner now under center, Larry Fitzgerald and Boldin (if he’s healthy) should be two premier options from here on out, especially with the weak docket of opponents.

- Newsday’s Tom Rock (who, incidentally, doesn’t appear to rock all that much at all) is reporting that Chad Pennington will be on a short leash this Sunday. He’s looked dreadful for the last five quarters (and, really, all season from where we sit). Chad has now throw five INTs in the last two games and seems to have lost it:

When Pennington stood at the podium after the game on Sunday and looked off into the distance to replay those interceptions in his mind, it was startling. It was as if he were looking for answers as much as we reporters and you fans were. It was a look of confusion, like he was trying to analyze a car wreck right after it happened. He looked at the back wall, squinted, winced a little, and talked about where he thought things might have gone wrong.

Pennington hasn’t throw any long TDs, and the 71.2% passing is completely unrepresentative of his actual performance. The guy can’t throw anything but short and mid-range lollipops and rainbows. Kellen Clemens is the better option for the Jets in the short- and long-term. Expect to see him either this week or next, and feel free to cut bait if you’re hanging on to Pennington.

- He’s one of the most dynamic and explosive players in the NFL, but owning Brian Westbrook is a headache I try to avoid. Fortunately for his owners, Westbrook and L.J. Smith both returned and practiced fully on Wednesday. They draw the lowly Jets defense this weekend, and you should feel fantastic about starting Westbrook this week… unless he stubs his pinkie toe in the next three days. L.J. Smith, not just yet.

- In another bit of positive injury news, early-season stud LaMont Jordan was in practice on Wednesday. Most sources expected him to miss practice for a bulk of the week, so this is a good sign to be sure. The Sunday before last he was carted off the field and seen on crutches after the game, causing a significant amount of concern, but it appears he’s avoided a major injury and should be in the lineup this weekend. Still, Justin Fargas played extremely well last game and Dominic Rhodes is eligible to return this week, so Jordan may not be in line to get the monopoly on carries he had through the season’s first month. The schedule is just OK from here on out, but if healthy Jordan is a strong RB2 most weeks and a RB3 at worst in bad matchups.

- After an impressive performance filling in for Santana Moss on Sunday, it appears more than likely that Antwaan Randle El will miss this week’s game against the Packers. Washington Reskins HC Joe Gibbs said, “hopefully we’ll have a miracle there and he can get healed up.” That doesn’t sound good. With Santana Moss fully participating in practice, Randle El is too soft to deal with Green Bay’s physical defense anyway and probably wasn’t worth another start this weekend.

- Two weeks ago Rudi Johnson was ruled out of the Bengals’ contest with the Patriots early in the week, indicating that it was a fairly serious hamstring injury. They had their bye in Week 5 and most owners were hoping he’s be fine for this weekend. Unfortunately, once again he isn’t practicing and likely won’t be taking a bulk of the carries even if he does manage to play. Cincinnati team physician Carson Palmer told the press on Wednesday that he expected to see a lot of Kenny Watson. Plan on starting Watson as a strong flex play this week against a beatable Chiefs defense.

- Jamal Lewis (foot) was in a protective boot and did not practice for the Browns on Wednesday. “He’s working to get back,” coach Romeo Crennel said. “If he can play, he’s going to play. We’ll take it day to day, and we’ll see how it does. Probably later in the week we’ll know more.” The results of Lewis’ MRI revealed he has a “strain, and the fact that he was in a boot isn’t a good sign. Jason Wright would make a solid flex play against Miami if Lewis sits out.

And real quick from Brian…

- The Detroit Lions have certainly showed signs of improvement–when you win something like two games in the past 10 years, it’s hard not to–but so far in ‘07, when they lose, they really lose. Sporting a respectable 3-2 record as they head into their Week 6 bye, the Leos’ two losses have been by an average of 33 points (to the Eagles and Redskins, respectively). After last week’s de-manning at the hands of the ‘Skins, HC Rod Marinelli didn’t appreciate being grilled about the usage–or lack of usage–of stud rookie WR Calvin Johnson, who’s been battling a sore back and is still not lining up as a starter. “We’ll look at him. The biggest thing, as I pointed out last night, is that he wasn’t (100 percent healthy),” said Marinelli. “He was limited last week (in practice) as I pointed out. We were probably being smart with him at the end. He couldn’t go full speed. He was limited last week, he was limited. Like I said last night.”

There’ve also been rumors that some members of the Lions’ coaching staff are getting upset with Mike Martz’s play-calling, substitution patterns, etc lately on offense. Big losses will do that to you, but if the team comes out and beats Tampa Bay in Week 7, expect all to be well. Regardless, we agree that it’s time to give Johnson full-time duty; there’ve been absolutely no reports of him dogging it, or not studying his playbook, or not being a team player. Anything he hasn’t learned yet, put it on him to learn on the job. This kid can be a WR2 this year.

- Finally, we hear about a lot of professional MLB pitchers undergoing Tommy John Surgery. It’s become a much more common procedure than it used to be, and the chances for an acceptable if not full recovery seem to rise every year. It’s not every day, however, that you learn about NFL quarterbacks having it done, but that’s just what’s in store for Carolina Panthers QB Jake Delhomme, whose season is over and, maybe, career in doubt. Delhomme was off to a fantastic start to the ‘07 season, sporting a 111.9 QB Rating (career high), 64% completion percentage (career high), and 8 TDs with only 1 pick. David Carr steps into the starting role, and will be backed up by undrafted rookie Matt Moore and 82-year-old Vinny Testeverde, last seen as a guest on the The Lawrence Welk Show.

We’re shocked–shocked–that Delhomme isn’t sucking it up and taking one for the team. Doesn’t he realize what his stat projections are? Has he looked at the team’s QB depth chart lately? Tommy John Surgery. Pffft. Grow a pair, Jake. We doubt this injury is even real.

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