Beanie Wells Injury: Is Arizona Cardinals RB Worth Risk of Starting in Fantasy?

According to Andrew Bogusch, Beanie Wells will play today vs the New York Giants. Coach Whisenhunt doesn't see a scenario where Wells won't play. However, it is unknown how many carries Wells will receive.

Fantasy owners need to be careful when deciding whether or not to start Wells. Hamstring injuries are not easy to overcome. They are very unpredictable; it only takes one move to aggravate the injury. Starting Wells only to have him leave early would be devastating to your fantasy lineup.

At this point, you should consider your bench options. If you have someone with a favorable matchup, subbing him in for Wells would not be a bad idea.

If you bench Wells, you have to be willing to live with the results. The fact he is expected to play means that he could put up some good numbers. As a fantasy owner, you need to weigh the risk-vs-reward factor.

If you owned Adrian Peterson and were in a similar situation, you would likely start Peterson. He has a much higher reward potential. 

Wells is a high-risk, little-reward play. He is facing a tough Giants defense that has done a good job against the run. Wells could very well get 20 carries, but fail to produce 10 fantasy points. For me, Wells is not a good starting option.

I expect the Cardinals to attack the Giants through the air. The Giants' secondary is missing several key players. This could limit the amount of running plays. Wells could receive only a portion of carries from a limited running attack.

Another concern is the Giants offense vs the Cardinals defense. New York loves to run the football and control the clock. They are facing a Cardinals defense that doesn't do a good job stuffing the run. Expect the Giants to control a good portion of the clock.

Jon Dove is a featured columnist at Bleacher Report, covering the NFL and NFL draft. Check him out on Twitter @Jon_Dove42.