Fantasy Football Injury Report Week 8: Tony Romo & Brett Favre Replacements
On the other side of the injury coin is the endearing Tony Romo, the guy who helped a dude change a flat tire on the way home from a game one night.
While Favre’s status isn’t clear for Sunday’s game, Romo’s is. The Cowboys gunslinger is out for 6-8 weeks with a broken clavicle. This news comes as a crushing blow to Romo owners, who most likely drafted him in the third or fourth round and probably picked up a table scraps backup.
Romo’s value to fantasy owners was tremendous. He was Mr. Reliable, throwing a touchdown in 18 straight games including last night’s short pass to Jason Witten. He was a lock to go off on Thanksgiving Day. There’s nothing like a three touchdown performance to chase turkey and stuffing, is there?
Fear not. Replacements for Romo, Favre, and Alex Smith are available in many leagues. The best candidate for big numbers in future matchups is the Chiefs’ Matt Cassel. The former New England Patriot has thrown eight touchdowns in his last four games. His hot streak looks like it will continue to burn against the Bills, Raiders, Broncos, and Cardinals. He is still available in 59% of Y! leagues.
Another name that could rescue your season is the Bills’ Ryan Fitzpatrick. Like Cassel, Fitzpatrick is devouring opposing pass defenses. In his last four games, Fitz has thrown 11 touchdowns. His upcoming schedule isn’t as favorable as Cassel, but his week ten matchup against the Lions and his week eleven game against the Bengals could produce big numbers for the Harvard grad. As of Tuesday, Fitz was available in 82% of Y! leagues, a startling percentage considering his recent output.
Carolina’s Matt Moore is also begging to play on your roster. The former Oregon State quarterback put in a strong performance against San Francisco last week. Former Pro Bowl wideout Steve Smith is back from his ankle injury. Moore also benefits from the emergence of rookie receiver David Gettis.
And for those Dallas die-hards that hope Romo is healed by a shaman, pope, or priest, don’t dismiss backup Jon Kitna.
Kitna was the only backup in the NFL not to throw a pass last year. However, you may remember that he threw for over 4,000 yards in 2007 and 2008. Think of him as a Shaun Hill-type replacement with sharper weapons in the receiving corps. He connected with Dez Bryant for a touchdown twice in Monday’s game against the Giants, albeit the game outcome was already pretty much decided. The lowly Jaguars, purveyors of 16 passing touchdowns this year, await the former Lions signal caller this Sunday. Kitna is available in over 90% of Y! leagues.
Written by James Duren, exclusively for www.thefantasyfix.com.
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Tags: The Fantasy Fix, Fantasy Football, Fantasy Football Advice, Injuries, Week 8, Week Eight, Waiver Wire, NFL, QB Replacements, Tony Romo, Brett Favre, Dallas Cowboys, Minnesota Vikings, Matt Cassel, Kansas City Chiefs, Ryan Fitzpatrick, Buffalo Bills, Jon Kitna, Matt Moore, Carolina Panthers
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