Stash David Johnson – The Long Con

UPDATE-11/25/17:

*On November 22, Arizona Cardinals’ Head Coach Bruce Arians admitted David Johnson (wrist, I.R.) hasn’t “made expected progress” and isn’t expected to return this season.  Johnson had his cast removed from his wrist earlier this month, but is still experiencing soreness and weakness.  It’s looking more and more likely that Johnson will sit out the rest of this season and begin preparing for a return in 2018.  If he does come back this year, there’s no way it would come before week 16, giving fantasy owners the go-ahead to put Johnson on waivers.  If you happen to have an empty IR spot, go ahead and pick him up, because, well, you never know for sure, but don’t count on the running back to deliver a championship…

9/29/17:

Anyone with fantasy football experience knows that as long as you make the playoffs in your league you have a chance at winning a trophy. Unfortunately, the winning season required to get you into the playoffs is looking a little more improbable for those that were once proud owners of Arizona Cardinal’s running back David Johnson.  It appears he is scheduled to undergo surgery and will possibly miss up to 3 months as he recovers from a left wrist/hand injury. Having Johnson on your bench isn’t going to win you any games, but, his timely return could help win you that coveted trophy.

As of today you are going to see a lot of managers dropping or trading this prized RB for other waiver-wire-worthy (say that three times fast!) running backs… Possibly for some of the players mentioned in our week 1 waiver wire article posted a few days ago – shameless plug… but who can blame those managers really?  It’s hard to justify keeping someone on their bench, even someone as talented as Johnson, until maybe Christmas time.

But if you are fortunate enough to be in a league with some bench space, an IR spot or can somehow manage to scoop him up this week, TAKE HIM! We don’t yet know the full details of his injury clearly at this point or even what his surgery entailed, so there’s not enough info at this point to get a decent idea on Johnson’s recovery time-table.

If he broke his wrist, then yes, you are probably looking at least 12 weeks before he returns and then dropping him is not out of the question. Initial x-rays were reported “negative” for any fracture to his wrist so this is unlikely, but the MRI later performed may have picked up on a hair-line fracture. The details aren’t clear at this point. It appears more likely that he has a broken bone in his hand, and even with surgery, may require less healing time. This is good news for his current fantasy owners.

Remember, we aren’t dealing with a quarterback’s throwing arm or a wide receiver’s knee. We are dealing with a running back’s hand. Demarco Murray didn’t miss one game after having surgery on his hand with two weeks remaining in the 2014 season. With that healing hand Murray managed to run for 158 yards on 42 carries, scored 2 touchdowns, and had three receptions!

I’m not saying Johnson won’t be affected by his injury or that he couldn’t be out for the rest of the season, but his condition is worth monitoring for the next week or two before any hasty decisions are made. Your choice could be the difference between holding a trophy in your hand or holding a pile of regret.