The Detroit Lions should have Matthew Stafford start for Week 3 after dealing with an injury last weekend and players like Ameer Abdullah and Eric Ebron are the best fantasy football options along with Calvin Johnson and Golden Tate. The Lions have not been able to get Joique Bell going yet and he is a bench option for this week until he starts performing.
The Lions are coming in after a loss and now they are 0-2 as they take on the Denver Broncos this Sunday. The team is hoping that Matthew Stafford can play and according to the Detroit Free Press, the quarterback said that he is expecting to start for Week 3. Jim Caldwell was not ready to confirm that Stafford will start Sunday and said "we'll see" regarding the status for the quarterback against Denver.
Stafford is dealing with rib and chest injuries suffered last week, but he was able to work out with the Lions in their Monday walkthrough. The Free Press reports that Stafford was able to practice without any limitations on Wednesday and that is a strong sign that he should be able to play on Sunday. Stafford has not missed a game in four years and the Lions desperately need him active to try and avoid an 0-3 skid to start the season.
Stafford may not be 100 percent, but as long as he is not in too much pain, he likely will play. Fantasy owners should keep an eye on the status for Stafford, because if he is out, it likely means that Ameer Abdullah, Bell and Theo Riddick could get more work. Abdullah is the only player that fantasy owners should feel confident in starting, but Bell could finally bounce back after two bad weeks to open the season.
Abdullah is a rookie and over the first two games he has basically been the starter despite not being number one on the depth chart. Abdullah did not get many touches in Week 2, but that was more about the way the game developed for the Lions and it pushed the running game aside. Abdullah had a great game in Week 1 with 50 yards rushing, four catches for 44 yards receiving and 105 yards returning kicks. The Lions plan to use Abdullah like that moving forward and after putting up just nine yards last week, he could be in line for a bigger game in Week 3.
Bell has put up just 16 yards rushing on 10 carries and he has not done much otherwise, making four catches for 43 yards in two games. Bell was great last season, putting up over 1100 total yards, including a career best 860 rushing yards. Bell also added 34 catches for 322 yards and he needs to get things going to be a fantasy option moving forward.
Johnson and Ebron are the best starters for this week and Johnson comes in after a great game, making 10 catches for 83 yards and a TD against the Vikings. Ebron could finally be close to breaking out, as he had five catches for 43 yards and a TD and more promising are the 10 targets he saw from Matthew Stafford.
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