Fantasy Football Morning Update: Will Fred Jackson be ready?
I have only one comment about last night's officiating debacle in Seattle: I know the Packers are PO'd, but do they know that tweeting their anger about the replacement officials is the same as saying things out loud?
On to the news:
- With RB C.J. Spiller (shoulder) expected to miss at least this week's game against the Patriots, the Bills may be helped by the return of Fred Jackson, who has missed two games with a sprained knee ligament. On Monday, Jackson gave himself a "70 to 75 percent chance" of playing in Week 4, and head coach Chan Gailey is "very optimistic" about Jackson's chances to play. Stay tuned for news on Jackson's practice progress this week, and don't be too shy about picking up backup Tashard Choice in case Jackson can't go. Choice's free-agent appeal certainly takes a hit in the wake of the Jackson news, but he still could be the Bills' lead back this week.
- Revis Island is on hiatus until 2013, as Jets CB Darrelle Revis will miss the rest of the season due to a torn ACL in his left knee.
- The status of Matthew Stafford's leg injury is uncertain, so we'll need to wait for Wednesday's practice to start getting an idea about his chances to play in Week 4. Backup Shaun Hill performed capably in relief of Stafford on Sunday, and has had past success in the Lions' pass-happy offense, so you should expect a good game if he has to face the Lions. However, due to Stafford's shaky status, I'd probably only pick up Hill if I owned Stafford or one of this week's bye quarterbacks.
- Speaking of the byes, the Colts and Steelers are off in Week 4. Also, the Thursday night matchup is Browns-Ravens. Set your lineups accordingly.
- Dolphins RB Reggie Bush (knee) thinks he might be able to play against the Cardinals on Sunday, so don't put too many eggs in his backups' baskets. Lamar Miller ran well (nine carries, 48 yards) on Sunday, but the Dolphins don't seem to trust his pass-blocking just yet. Daniel Thomas ran 19 times for 69 yards and a score, but he's fumbled twice in three games, making him hard to trust as well.
- Is anyone else starting to worry a little bit about Andre Johnson, who has been targeted just eight times over the past two weeks, catching five passes for 93 yards and a TD? The Texans run the ball an awful lot.
- The Eagles expect WR Jeremy Maclin to return this week after missing Week 3 with a hip injury.
- Colts WR Austin Collie is done for the season due to a knee injury. Try to grab Donnie Avery in your PPR leagues, as he's pretty clearly the Colts' No. 2 receiver.
- Darrius Heyward-Bey's neck injury isn't as bad as it looked, but he has a concussion, and the Raiders don't know when he'll be ready to play again. You've been looking to cut him in shallower leagues anyway, right?
- It sounds like Ryan Mathews' propensity for fumbling might cost him some red-zone opportunities. You need to start Mathews if you own him, but keep an eye on this.
- Keep an eye on the status of oft-injured Cardinals RB Beanie Wells, who injured a toe on Sunday. Neither Wells nor Ryan Williams appears to be a great start against the Dolphins this week, but Williams as a solo act could be an option.
- Cowboys TE Jason Witten says he's going to stop dropping passes. Your fantasy owners hope so, Jason.
- Bears head coach Lovie Smith says he's "hopeful" that RB Matt Forte (ankle) will return to action Monday against the Cowboys. I don't think I'm buying into Smith's optimism, but let's see if Forte practices Wednesday.
- Browns head coach Pat Shurmur seems to be getting a little annoyed with Greg Little's dropped passes. Little isn't in danger of losing his job yet, but if he has more butterfingers on Thursday ...
- Dexter McCluster (elbow) and Peyton Hillis (ankle) are iffy for the Chiefs this week. If Hillis can't play, Shaun Draughn could be an interesting deep sleeper as Jamaal Charles' second banana.
- Giants RB Ahmad Bradshaw has been cleared to return to practice, but it's unclear how much he'll have to share carries with new fantasy darling Andre Brown. The New York Daily News says that Bradshaw is "expected to reclaim his starting job."
- Giants WR Hakeem Nicks (foot) figures to return this week. However, head coach Tom Coughlin says that Nicks will probably practice once a week for the foreseeable future, so don't let news on that front alarm you.
- WR Jerome Simpson will rejoin the Vikings this week after serving a three-game suspension to open the season. Simpson caught 50 passes for 725 yards and four touchdowns for the Bengals in 2011. He projects to be behind Percy Harvin and Kyle Rudolph on Christian Ponder's list of favorite receiving targets, and since the Vikes aren't exactly pass-happy, I can't say I'm too excited about Simpson.
- People asking "What's wrong with the Saints?" - like this column does - might want to Google the offseason news about the team's player and coach suspensions. It was kind of a big deal, and simply having Drew Brees on the team doesn't fix it.
- Rams head coach Jeff Fisher said Monday that he thinks RB Steven Jackson "would benefit from the week" to heal his groin injury. Does that mean Jackson should rest? Hmm ...
- Titans head coach Mike Munchak on WR Kenny Britt (ankle): "Hopefully he'll be limited in practice but ready for the weekend."
- My colleague Joel Beall will be in the FOXSports.com fantasy chat roomtoday at 3 p.m. ET, so make sure to send your questions. Joel will also sub for me in Thursday afternoon's chat, as I'll be taking a chat bye week.
See you back here later today with a baseball post, and on Friday (late morning ET) with more football news.

