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Defensive Notes

In the wake of the Kevin Everett injury, talking about how brutal Sunday was on defenses around the league needs to be put in the proper perspective. None of the other injuries were as sobering as the one suffered by the Buffalo tight end. What’s sad is that few NFL observers were left wondering how such an injury could happen – but rather, why they don’t occur more often.

In any case, the NFL goes forward, teams continue to play on, and a lot of them will do so without some key defenders. The roundup:

- Start in Buffalo, where the Everett injury was by far the most serious, although not the only one. Linebacker Coy Wire, himself replacing Keith Ellison, sprained a knee and is out “indefinitely”; he could miss the season. Cornerback Jason Webster (forearm) and safety Ko Simpson (ankle) are also gone for the year. It’s safe to drop them in IDP formats, and also safe to say the only reason to keep the Bills defense around is on the chance that Roscoe Parrish will bring another punt back for a touchdown, as he did in week 1.

- In Dallas, nose tackle Jason Ferguson is done for the year with a torn bicep. The Cowboys may not have an adequate replacement, and opponents will find it a lot easier to run on them this season – as the Giants did after Ferguson was sidelined. That in turn could cut down on their sack and turnover numbers. Baltimore also may have lost Ray Lewis to a triceps injury, although there were conflicting reports as we went to press with this. If he’s sidelined for any length of time, the Ravens defense will probably slip at least a spot (behind New England) in our yardage rankings.

- Not only did Chicago lose in week 1, it also lost starting safety Mike Brown for the season with a knee injury. Brown has missed a lot of time over the past three seasons so it’s not like the team isn’t used to being without him, but it still hurts – they’re better and more opportunistic with him on the field. Danieal Manning will start in his place. The Bears also lost tackle Dusty Dvoracek with a torn ACL; all in all, not a good start for the top-ranked fantasy defense.

- The Giants’ offensive injuries got most of the attention, but defensive end Osi Umenyiora will probably miss at least a month with a sprained knee. Bad news for a defense that wasn’t going to be very good anyway.

- Philadelphia’s Lito Sheppard is a great playmaker, but he’s had some problems staying healthy. He’ll miss at least the next game with a sprained knee, which is not a good time for his team to be facing Santana Moss on Monday Night Football. Odds are Sheppard will miss a few weeks.

- Not many owners had Houston’s defense on their roster anyway, but the team is now down to its third strong safety after losing Glenn Earl in the preseason and Jason Simmons in week 1. Perhaps former Seahawk Michael Boulware will resurrect his career in the role. The team also signed former Giant Will Demps, a productive IDP option a year ago.

- In Miami, safety Yeremiah Bell (Achilles’ tendon) could be done for the year. Travares Tillman will likely fill in and be pretty busy; the team also signed former Jaguar Donovin Darius.

Quick Hits: Carolina rises and St. Louis falls this week, after one game which proved that John Fox still knows how to assemble a defensive unit which, when healthy, is pretty effective. The Rams, in contrast, still have some issues with their run defense. Until they get that sorted out, they’re not going to be a reliable play. … Good on us: Green Bay looked every bit as impressive as we anticipated, helping the Packers to a win despite virtually no contributions from the offense. Minnesota was also impressive in shutting down the Falcons. … On the other hand: We might have talked up Oakland a little too much, as a turnover-prone offense will usually prevent a good defense from putting up good numbers. Until the Raiders get consistent play from the offense, the defense will be unable to truly excel.

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