NFL Injury Report: Key Injuries That Could Cripple Your Fantasy Team

As we get ready for Thanksgiving, we once again look at the players who ended up hurt or banged up at the end of action on Sunday.

This week looks like the fantasy football apocalypse as there are some big names on the list of the wounded.

We've got two big-time quarterbacks to worry about, another who has been a decent backup and a top five running back.

If some of these injuries are significant and if they put any of these guys out of action for several weeks, it could mean the difference between making the playoffs and watching your league-mates battle for the top spot as you try to figure out what happened.

NFL Injury Report: Adrian Peterson

Adrian Peterson has been playing pretty well this season—if by "pretty well" I mean, playing to his usual top-five ability.

Despite the rest of the team being mediocre and with a rookie quarterback calling the shots, Peterson has looked very good all season long.

Though he did have an off week against the Packers in Week 10, he looked ready to do some damage against the Raiders on Sunday, totaling 26 yards on six carries, as well as a touchdown.

That was just the first quarter, though, and Peterson limped off the field and into the locker room not long after his touchdown.

X-rays were negative in the locker room and Peterson appeared to be able to put weight on it, but there is still a concern it could be either a very severe strain or worse: a high ankle sprain.

If Peterson misses any amount of time you'll be hard-pressed to replace his points and by the looks of it Sunday, backup Toby Gerhart isn't the answer for you.

Watch the injury reports over the next two weeks very closely. Hopefully Peterson will be OK, but if he is not, it couldn't come at a worse time as owners are jockeying for fantasy playoff spots. If it's a bad sprain, I wouldn't be shocked if he missed at least Week 12.

Make sure you have some other options just in case and cross your fingers that it's only a little bump in the road.

NFL Injury Report: Matt Hasselbeck

According to Titans coach Mike Munchak, the Titans are unsure if Hasselbeck's elbow will keep him from playing in the Week 12 matchup against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. If he cannot go, rookie Jake Locker will fill in again.

In all likelihood, Hasselbeck wasn't your top quarterback but he might have been your backup, and if he's down you will probably have to get yourself a new back up. The problem is, Hasselbeck was a better-than-average backup for owners and it's hard to get excited about having to pick up a guy like Locker or someone like Rex Grossman, Colt McCoy or rookie Christian Ponder.

Hasselbeck had looked good this year, though, in the last few weeks he has had his production dip a bit.

While he isn't the most serious injury on this list nor the most critical player, Hasselbeck was a lot of owner's insurance fund and it won't be easy to replace him if the waiver wire has been picked over.

NFL Injury Report: Michael Vick

I almost hate to say "I told you so," but then again, maybe I'll reserve the right until after Vick has missed another week or so. The cracked ribs he gained last week kept him from playing the Giants this week and are serious enough to where we're not sure when we will see Vick again.

Vick's stock had already been falling based on two poor outings to the Bears and the Cowboys before he flat-out missed Sunday night's game.

The fact is that we knew there was a strong chance Vick wouldn't make it through the season—his running style, the offensive line and his injury history were all concerns.

The difficulty has been that due to his numbers last year, Vick went incredibly high this preseason. So, in gambling that his numbers would be the equivalent of both a stud quarterback and a top-shelf running back, it's almost as if you've burned two picks.

Many owners grabbed Vince Young as a potential backup and while I like Young in this offense, I don't think his fantasy value will be that great. Watching the Eagles-Giants game I thought I saw a still rusty Young struggle at times during the game and while he got better as the day went on, it's still a shaky situation. Young can be good but he won't be Vick.

Aside from just how long the ribs will shelve him, the other question is do the Eagles shut him down if the injury looks to be lasting long enough for the Eagles to be eliminated from the playoff hunt?

If that's the case, given how much money is in Vick's contract, they might decide to let Vick heal all the way and make sure he's healthy as can be with an eye towards next season.

NFL Injury Report: Jay Cutler

During the Sunday Night Football game, news came that Jay Cutler broke his thumb on his throwing hand.

It gets worse.

It looks as though he will require surgery after which he will miss six to eight weeks.

That leaves Cutler owners scrambling to figure out, 1) what to do with him and his roster spot and 2) who can you use to replace him short term?

The schedule, as mentioned in the above linked article, is as such: Oakland, Kansas City, Seattle, Green Bay and Minnesota. That's not the type of thing where I want to grab Cutler's backup, Caleb Hanie.

Cutler might—might—be back in time for your championship matchup, but the last thing I want to see is my starting fantasy quarterback against the Packers in Championship week.

You can hold Cutler just in case, but it's unlikely you'll get any use out of him from here on out.

NFL Injury Report: Matt Stafford

Stafford's not out right now but it is apparent that his finger is really bothering him. While this isn't serious in the way that the rest of this list could be, it has definitely hampered him the last few weeks.

Wearing a glove to help protect his hand as well as grip the ball better, Stafford started out in Sunday's game winging the ball a little haphazardly. He did settle down later but he was definitely impeded by the injury or the gloves, or both.

By game's end he was responsible for seven interceptions in just four quarters.

There isn't much you can do—you can't just plug in another player at the spot—and with the Lions a strong contender for a playoff berth, I don't think the Lions can afford to have anyone but Stafford behind center.

That means you can still trot him out, if you're willing to have a few interceptions. Hopefully this is the extent of his injuries the rest of the way as it will be tough to replace a top-five quarterback on your roster.