It’s obvious that since Roger Goodell took over his position as NFL Commissioner, he’s tried to limit injuries and damage to play­ers as much he can through new equipment rules, etc. Unfortunately, football is one of the most contact-heavy sports in existence, so injuries are almost guaranteed to happen. This season has already claimed a large num­ber of key players. You should care because those injuries are changing the whole of the fantasy world.

The biggest injury to note: Jamaal Charles. Charles is a player who I believed was going to have a great year, and was a first round pick in most fantasy leagues. Now, Charles is going to be out for the season due to a torn ACL. Similar to the injury that Tom Brady endured in 2008 after his ridicu­lous 50 touchdown, record-braking year, this injury is going to ruin many fantasy teams in leagues everywhere. Unfortunately, there aren’t too many running backs to pick up, unless you picked up someone like Mike Tol­bert last week. So for most of you guys, your best bet is to pick up back-up Thomas Jones and hope for the best. That’s the nature of the game.

Charles isn’t the only big injury, however. Both Michael Vick and Tony Romo should be out for at least next week and probably the week after. This should be a gurantee for Romo, who suffered a fractured rib in Sun­day’s game against the San Francisco 49ers. The solution for this problem should be much easier to resolve though, as there are some good options for pickups at the quar­terback position, including Matt Stafford, Cam Newton, Kevin Kolb or even Mike Kaf­ka. Seriously, the third-stringer is a worthy risk considering he’s playing the New York Giants defense.

In other news, Houston Texans running back Arian Foster is still very questionable, so try to get a hold of Ben Tate. New England Patriots tight end Aaron Hernandez should be out as well, so expect Rob Gronkowski to put up big numbers again after his two-touchdown performance last week. As for players like Chris Johnson of the Tennessee Titans and Antonio Gates of the San Diego Chargers, who have underplayed thus far this season, I think this week is a time where you still have to start them. Why? Chris Johnson is playing a weak Denver defense, and most of his points come from huge, un­predictable plays. Gates will most likely not be double-teamed again considering how important the coverage will be on Vincent Jackson. Plus, let’s face it, the Kansas City Chiefs defense is pathetic, letting up 89 points in two games to the Lions and Buf­falo Bills. Yikes! Players on the up for me include Stafford and Jahvid Best after the Li­ons have had an explosive start to the season, and Stevie Johnson, who is looking like he going to be huge this season with his per­formances thus far. I also expect LeSean Mc­Coy to have more carries and short throws leading to big points while Kafka is in the mix.

Contact Albert Raminfard at [email protected].