Fantasy Football Week 3 Injury Report: Texans Foolish for Rushing Arian Foster

The saga of running back Arian Foster's injury continues to proceed in full swing as the Houston Texans get set to face the New Orleans Saints in Week 3.

Here's a breakdown of how Foster's hamstring injury has been described thus far: "anti-awesome," needing at least two weeks to fully heal, not needing at least two weeks to fully heal, being healthy enough for Foster to start in Week 2 and being unhealthy enough for him to re-aggravate it in Week 2.

All caught up?

The drama over Foster's hamstring injury could lead to a reality show in itself. You know, the bickering with ESPN's Colin Cowherd, the ill-advised Twitter pic of his MRI exam, the fantasy football backlash, etc., etc. It's all there.

Well, what do you know, Foster's being deemed "questionable" leading up to Sunday thus far. You know, because "active" or "inactive" would lead to absolutely no drama whatsoever.

Texans coach Gary Kubiak is calling Foster a "game-time decision," which is exactly what he was until he re-aggravated his hamstring last week.

But let me say this.

First of all, fantasy owners should not start Foster. If he plays, he'll be limited, and the Texans have done just fine with backup Ben Tate for now.

Secondly, and more importantly in the grand scheme of things, the Texans should not play Foster. I was shocked when they played him in Week 2. He was clearly not 100 percent—they just beat division foes the Indianapolis Colts without him, and there was no need to risk further injuring their star running back against a team in the Miami Dolphins they would have defeated regardless.

If Foster misses significant time this season or is severely limited, and the Texans miss out on the playoffs, it could all trace back to Week 2, when he re-aggravated a hamstring that needed time to heal. That would fall directly on the coaching staff's shoulders, and primarily on the shoulders of Kubiak.

The Texans made a huge risk when they opted to let Foster play in Week 2. If they make the same mistake in Week 3, they deserve to miss the postseason.