Michael Vick Injury: 5 Fantasy Replacements for Injured QB

Michael Vick has taken a beating this year and would benefit from sitting out Week 4 against the San Francisco 49ers.

It remains to be seen what the extent of Vick’s hand injury is. Andy Reid states that he is day-to-day with a bruised, not broken, right non-throwing hand.

Fantasy owners are taking a collective sigh of relief as it seems their superstar dual-threat QB won’t miss the initial three to four weeks most expected.

Still, fantasy owners need to take precaution.

Granted, anybody that grabbed Vick anywhere in their draft, let alone towards the top, should have already drafted a backup knowing his reckless playing style.

Unfortunately, not everybody takes such precautions and owners are now looking elsewhere for potential injury replacements.

It is imperative owners do not wait until later this week to find out if Vick will play or not. Fantasy footballers—Vick owners and non-Vick owners—must take note of this injury.

Luckily for them, the NFL has become a seemingly strictly passing-oriented league. We have signal-callers throwing the rock all over the place and even rushing it in themselves for touchdowns ala Vick.

Looking ahead to Week 4 and who could potentially still be available on your waiver wire, here are the top five fantasy replacements for Vick.

5. Jason Campbell, Oakland Raiders

Jason Campbell has been surprisingly effective this season. His receivers are making plays for him and he’s displayed fantastic poise, leadership, arm strength and accuracy through three games.

The Raiders will host an angry New England Patriots squad at home. The Pats can come in as angry as they want; it won’t prevent their defense from leaking big play after big play.

The Pats have been exploited through the air and it is not unlikely that speedsters Denarius Moore, Jacoby Ford and Darrius Heyward-Bey could dissect them deep. As always, Campbell will have superstar RB Darren McFadden to lean on out of the backfield. As we saw against the Jets, McFadden can take it to the house from anywhere on the field.

Keep in mind that Campbell is a mobile QB and could very well score from close range too. He already has a career-high two rushing touchdowns.

New England surrendered 416 yards and two TDs to Miami’s Chad Henne Week 1. They then gave up 378 yards and two TDs to Philip Rivers Week 2 and 369 yards and two TDs to Ryan Fitzpatrick last week.

Campbell is completing a career-high 65.9 percent of his passes for 584 yards, three TDs and just one interception.

4. Donovan McNabb, Minnesota Vikings

Unlike Brett Favre in 2009, Donovan McNabb is not enjoying a career renaissance in Minnesota.

Fortunately, he’ll have every opportunity to relive his glory years as the Vikings travel to Kansas City to take on the injury-depleted Chiefs.

The Chiefs are already without superstar second-year safety Eric Berry, but they could be without stud cornerback Brandon Flowers, who suffered an ankle injury Week 3 against San Diego.

Considering the luck the Chiefs had to begin the season, it’s not safe to assume Flowers to play.

The Chiefs stood their ground nicely against the Chargers on the road, especially considering they were outscored 89-10 to begin the season.

Still, McNabb is starting to come into this own. He is still a quality game manager and excels on the fly, as evidenced by his touchdown pass to Visanthe Shiancoe against Detroit on a bobbled snap.

Percy Harvin was forced to exit Week 3 due to illness, but he is expected to play Week 4. Look for McNabb to put up solid numbers on the road.

3. Colt McCoy, Cleveland Browns

Colt McCoy is quickly mastering the West Coast offense. He has been great to begin the year, piggybacking off his stellar preseason.

Cleveland doesn’t have elite weapons for their franchise signal-caller, but that hasn't stopped the aerial attack from succeeding. Colt makes great use of them thanks to his arm strength, poise, mobility and accuracy.

He is a quality passer on the run, which is perfect for his motley crew of receivers consisting of wideouts Mohamed Massaquoi, Josh Cribbs and Greg Little and tight ends Evan Moore and Benjamin Watson.

McCoy has the privilege of going against Tennessee at home. The Titans just lost Kenny Britt for the year and Chris Johnson doesn’t look like his normal explosive self. Tennessee doesn’t have a poor secondary, but they won’t rough up McCoy like they did Kyle Orton Week 3.

Through three games, he has 634 yards, five touchdowns and two interceptions.

2. Rex Grossman, Washington Redskins

The Shanahan family has worked wonders for journeyman QB Rex Grossman. Grossman was fantastic to end the 2010 season and is already putting together a stellar 2011 campaign.

It remains to be seen how he will perform against Dallas’ new-look defense, but he scorched them last season and should see success tonight.

Regardless, expect Grossman to blow up next week on the road against the St. Louis Rams. He’ll be in a dome, so no need to worry about any weather conditions.

Through two contests, he’s thrown for 596 yards, four touchdowns and two interceptions. The Rams defense has been depleted due to injuries and won’t be able to compete with Santana Moss, Tim Hightower and Fred Davis.

Joe Flacco and rookie Torrey Smith just dissected the Rams for three scores of their own, so look for Grossman to have a field day Week 4.

1. Vince Young, Philadelphia Eagles

Whenever one starting QB goes down, it’s important to look towards the backup.

In this case, throw away everything you know about Mike Kafka—he’s not good.

Former Tennessee Titans superstar Vince Young should finally have his opportunity to captain his “Dream Team.”

I’ve always believed VY was a Super Bowl caliber QB and this would be his opportunity to prove me and his believers right. He has a phenomenal matchup with the 49ers at home Week 4 and should start if Michael Vick is forced to sit.

Young is not nearly as accurate as Vick displayed last year, but he has the leadership qualities and poise Andy Reid is looking for.

Let’s be real, Reid can’t throw second-year QB Kafka back out there. He was pathetic in limited action against New York as he threw two interceptions on poorly thrown passes.

VY was active for the first time Week 3 after suffering a hamstring injury in the preseason finale. He’s finally healthy and will have every opportunity to prepare for the 49ers in a major opportunity to right Philly’s sinking ship.

In Reid’s offense, VY could produce top-10 fantasy QB numbers.