Fantasy Football Week 3: Buying or Selling Top Injured Players

If you're an NFL player and you suited up in Week 2, chances are you're injured right now. 

It was an epidemic. Stadiums across the league quickly transformed into infirmaries as key players dropped like flies. Robert Griffin III, A.J. Green, Jamaal Charles, Ryan Mathews, Vernon Davis. The list goes on and on. 

Surprisingly, there are some players left who are actually healthy. But that's basically a tiny portion of the league at this point, so let's take a look at what injured players you can trust in Week 3. 

Note: These are relative to player values. "Buy" suggests a player will live up to his positional ranking, via FantasyPros.com's expert consensus rankings, in Week 3 (12-team leagues). "Sell" suggests he'll fall short of it. Long-term value is not taken into account.

Also note: Injury reports via ESPN.com, while players who are "out" are not listed.

Player	Injury	Rank	Buy/Sell
Andre Ellington, ARI	Foot	RB2	Buy
Carson Palmer, ARI	Shoulder	QB3	Sell
Roddy White, ATL	Hamstring	WR2	Sell
Julio Jones, ATL	Ankle	WR1	Buy
DeAngelo Williams, CAR	Thigh	RB4	Buy
Alshon Jeffery, CHI	Hamstring	WR1	Buy
Brandon Marshall, CHI	Ankle	WR1	Buy
A.J. Green, CIN	Toe	WR4	Sell
Jordan Cameron, CLE	Shoulder	TE2	Buy
Tony Romo, DAL	Back	QB2	Buy
Dez Bryant, DAL	Shoulder	WR1	Buy
T.Y. Hilton, IND	Groin	WR3	Buy
Jamaal Charles, KC	Ankle	RB4	Sell
Lamar Miller, MIA	Ankle	RB2	Buy
Eric Decker, NYJ	Hamstring	WR3	Buy
Maurice Jones-Drew, OAK	Hand	RB4	Sell
Vernon Davis, SF	Ankle/Knee	TE1	Sell
Doug Martin, TB	Knee	RB2	Sell
Jordan Reed, WAS	Hamstring	TE2	Sell
DeSean Jackson, WAS	Shoulder	WR3	Buy

Lamar Miller, Miami Dolphins: Buy

Alan Diaz/Associated Press

You may be worried about Lamar Miller's status after he exited last week's game with an ankle issue, but he didn't even appear on Tuesday's injury report. With Knowshon Moreno sidelined for several weeks, Miller has just Damien Williams, Orleans Darkwa and Daniel Thomas to compete with for carries. 

Volume often breeds fantasy success, and the second-year back is going to get as many touches as he can handle. And as Sports Illustrated's Michael Beller noted, he was already producing while splitting time with Moreno:

Moreover, a matchup with Kansas City is better than you might assume. While the Chiefs had one of the best play-making defenses in the league last season, don't forget they were near the bottom of the barrel in yards per carry allowed. 

That hasn't changed. 

Shonn Greene, Montee Ball and C.J. Anderson combined for 162 yards on 32 carries (5.1 YPC) through the first two weeks, and a slew of injuries are only making things worse for the Chiefs. Pro Bowl linebacker Derrick Johnson and defensive tackle Mike DeVito both ruptured their Achilles in the opener, while heat-seeking missile Eric Berry didn't practice Tuesday with an ankle injury.  

Miller has disappointed before, but even if his ankle isn't 100 percent, the circumstances don't get much better than this. He's a rock-solid RB2 in Week 3. 

Doug Martin, Tampa Bay Buccaneers: Sell

USA TODAY Sports

The matchup couldn't be better for Doug Martin. The Atlanta Falcons have given up at least eight standard fantasy points to an amazing five different running backs through their first two games, and a short week with little time to prepare means Lovie Smith will likely lean on the run game. 

However, there's a lot of unknown here. 

The Muscle Hamster is expected to play, but after missing last week's game with a knee injury, it's unclear how close he is to 100 percent. As Bleacher Report's Dave Siebert noted, his workload could be limited: 

That's especially true with Bobby Rainey in the mix. The Raineymaker (I'm sorry) gashed St. Louis for 144 yards on 22 carries in Week 2 and has proved that he deserves to get touches, even if Martin is good to go.

John Paulsen of 4for4.com put it simply: 

Until we see Martin actually produce—he had a whopping nine rushing yards in Week 1—under this new staff (a staff, remember, that drafted Charles Sims in the third round), it's safe to assume this will be a running back by committee situation. 

The matchup is good enough to play Martin, but the danger of the unknown—in terms of workload—keeps him outside of RB2 territory. He's a flex play in most leagues.