Today, Brian Westbrook will have surgery on his ankle. There are already rumors out there that Westbrook will be out until the regular season. While the Philadelphia Eagles haven’t given specifics of when they expect Westbrook to return, it’s likely that they take things slowly with their starting running back.

In the fantasy football world, this is bad news for Westbrook owners. He has always been a fragile player and he’s now undergoing his second offseason surgery. It’s difficult to imagine that he’ll be able to play all 16 games given the amount of rehab he’ll need just to get on the field for Week 1 of the regular season.

That said, Westbrook is a very enticing fantasy football running back. When he’s healthy, he’s one of the biggest threats — both running the ball and receiving the ball out of the backfield.

Considering his injury woes, the best idea is to take Westbrook but be sure to handcuff his backup. Second round pick LeSean McCoy will likely be the backup and if he is, he’s a must own if you decide to roll the dice with Westbrook in the 2009 fantasy football season.

1) Michael Turner, Atlanta Falcons
Turner has a good matchup and is running well.

2) Adrian Peterson, Minnesota Vikings
Peterson has talent will get a ton of touches.

3) Brian Westbrook, Philadelphia Eagles
Perhaps the most explosive of all the RBs.

4) LaDainian Tomlinson, San Diego Chargers
Not as dominant but will still produce.

5) Joseph Addai, Indianapolis Colts
Good matchup despite makes him startable.

6) Ronnie Brown, Miami Dolphins
Tough matchup but could surprise.

7) LeRon McClain, Baltimore Ravens
RB by committee but should get touches.

Tim Hightower, Arizona Cardinals
Only a TD threat at this point.

Although the 2009 fantasy football season is a long ways away, here’s an early look at a mock draft of the first round. It should be noted that the first round of the 2009 fantasy football draft looks like it will be all running backs in virtually every format.

1. Adrian Peterson, Minnesota Vikings
2. Michael Turner, Atlanta Falcons
3. Matt Forte, Chicago Bears
4. Brian Westbrook, Philadelphia Eagles
5. DeAngelo Williams, Carolina Panthers
6. Chris Johnson, Tennessee Titans
7. LaDainian Tomlinson, San Diego Chargers
8. Brandon Jacobs, New York Giants
9. Steve Slaton, Houston Texans
10. Maurice Jones-Drew, Jacksonville Jaguars
11. Clinton Portis, Washington Redskins
12. Frank Gore, San Francisco 49ers

1. DeAngelo Williams, Carolina Panthers
It’d be difficult to get much hotter than DeAngelo Williams is right now. He has 11 touchdowns in his last six games. In five of those six games, he rushed for more than 100 yards. In the other one, he had four touchdowns.

2. Brian Westbrook, Philadelphia Eagles
Although Briant Westbrook went through a slump, he’s come up huge the last two weeks. He has six total touchdowns during the span — three rushing and three receiving. He also has more than 330 total yards in the last two weeks.

3. Pierre Thomas, New Orleans Saints
In the last four weeks, Pierre Thomas has six touchdowns. Even with Reggie Bush back in the lineup, Thomas is getting a lot of action. Although he doesn’t get as many touches as featured backs, the fact that he’s in a high-powered offense makes up for it.

4. Michael Turner, Atlanta Falcons
Michael Turner has eight touchdowns in the last five weeks. In the one game he didn’t score a touchdown over that span, he had 120 rushing yards. On the season, Turner already has 12 touchdowns and 1269 rushing yards.

5. Thomas Jones, New York Jets
In the last nine weeks, Thomas Jones has 13 touchdowns to his name. He has at least one touchdown in eight of those nine games. In the one game he didn’t have a touchdown, he had a season-high 159 yards rushing.

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QB Matt Schaub, Houston Texans
Returning from injury, Matt Schaub showed why he’s regarded as one of the up and coming quarterbacks in fantasy football. In Week 14, Schaub played very well against the Green Bay Packers. He finished the game with 414 passing yards and two touchdowns. Plus he orchestrated a game-winning drive near the end of the game, which should help his confidence going forward.

RB Brian Westbrook, Philadelphia Eagles
When healthy, Brian Westbrook continues to be a beast. In Week 14, Westbrook had over 200 combined rushing and receiving yards and two touchdowns. More impressively, he did that damage against the New York Giants. The best news for Westbrook owners is that he looks healthy and should have a good finish to the season.

WR Brandon Marshall, Denver Broncos
Brandon Marshall had been quiet lately but he stepped up in a big way in Week 14. The Broncos wide receiver had 91 receiving yards and two touchdown receptions. Once upon a time, Marshall was the best wide receiving going in 2008 fantasy football. After this performance, he once again has to be considered elite.

TE Tony Gonzalez, Kansas City Chiefs
As has been the case often this season, Tony Gonzalez was the best tight end in Week 14 of the 2008 fantasy football season. Gonzalez finished the week with 73 yards and a touchdown. He now has at least five receptions for eight consecutive weeks. During that time, he also has five touchdowns.

QB Donovan McNabb, Philadelphia Eagles
A week after being benched, Donovan McNabb responded in a big way in Week 13 on Thanksgiving. McNabb had four touchdown passes to go along with 260 yards and no interceptions. Although he was going against the below average Arizona Cardinals defense, this performance bodes well for upcoming weeks.

RB Brian Westbrook, Philadelphia Eagles
McNabb wasn’t the only Eagles player who had a breakout game. Brian Westbrook, who had been slowed lately due to injury, had a huge day. Westbrook finished the game with four total touchdowns — two rushing and two receiving. If McNabb can get back to playing at a high level and Westbrook can stay healthy, this duo could be deadly coming down the stretch.

WR Larry Fitzgerald, Arizona Cardinals
Although Larry Fitzgerald didn’t have a great amount of yards in Week 13 on Thanksgiving, he made up with it by scoring two touchdowns. Overall, Fitzgerald finished with five catches for 65 yards and those two TDs. While Anquan Boldin has overshadowed him at times this season, that wasn’t the case on Thanksgiving.

TE Jason Witten, Dallas Cowboys
Since breaking a rib earlier in the season, Jason Witten hadn’t been his usual dominant self. On Thanksgiving, he finally seemed close to 100% and responded with a big game. Witten had 115 yards on nine catches and also notched a touchdown. Pencil in Witten for big fantasy football weeks for the rest of the season.

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QB Brady Quinn, Cleavland Browns
Although Brady Quinn has a broken finger, he’s going to play in Week 12.

RB Brian Westbrook, Philadelphia Eagles
Westbrook hasn’t been able to play and is a game-time decision.

RB Clinton Portis, Washington Redskins
Once again this week, Portis will be a game-time decision due to a knee injury.

RB Reggie Bush, New Orleans Saints
Bush is listed as questionable and was able to practice on Saturday, but many expect the Saints to hold him out another week.

RB Jerious Norwood, Atlanta Falcons
Norwood is questionable. Look elsewhere for a starter.

QB Plaxico Burress, New York Giants
Burress is listed as questionable but is looking more likely than not to play.

WR Roddy White, Atlanta Falcons
Although listed as questionable, White practiced on Friday and very well could play.

WR Derrick Mason, Baltimore Ravens
Mason is listed as questionable but should play.

TE Kellen Winslow, Cleveland Browns
Winslow is listed as questionable. He’ll be a game-time decision.

K Jason Elam, Atlanta Falcons
Elam is listed as questionable and shouldn’t be trusted in Week 12.

It’s never too early to look at next year in the world of fantasy football. Here’s a look at a 2009 fantasy football mock draft. It’s early but this could very well be what we see next year in fantasy drafts.

1. Adrian Peterson
After a great rookie season, AP is proving it wasn’t a fluke.

2. LaDainian Tomlinson
His career may be winding down LT has too much history to pass up.

3. Brian Westbrook
When healthy, Westbrook remains arguably the best fantasy RB.

4. Clinton Portis
He’s been great in 2008 and should be able to keep it up in 2009.

5. Matt Forte
Multidimensional Bears RB will be tough to overlook next season.

6. Brandon Jacobs
With the Giants looking like a powerhouse, Jacobs will retain value.

7. Marion Barber III
Even though not as explosive in 2008, he’s still a TD threat.

8. Frank Gore
Gore continues to prove he’s one of the most talented backs in NFL.

9. Michael Turner
Against poor defenses, Turner is money.

10. Chris Johnson
If LenDale wasn’t in the way, he’d be top five pick.

11. Steve Slaton
The Texans offense is getting better and Slaton is growing in value.

12. Tom Brady
Those 50 touchdowns won’t be easily forgotten.

QB Kurt Warner, Arizona Cardinals
Kurt Warner has turned back the clock this season and is reminding NFL experts why he has a pair of Super Bowl rings. He’s also reminding fantasy football owners why he used to be considered the best fantasy quarterback in the all the land. This week, against the St. Louis Rams, you have to think Warner will have even more motivation to torture the team he had his most success with.

RB Brian Westbrook, Philadelphia Eagles
When healthy, is there a better fantasy football player to own than Brian Westbrook? He’s such a multidimensional force the he’s a threat on just about every play. This week he has a good matchup and should be good for 100+ yards and a touchdown — at the very least.

WR Brandon Marshall, Denver Broncos
Brandon Marshall has cooled off as of late but this week against the Miami Dolphins he should rev it back up. Marshall has the perfect frame for a wide receiver and Jay Cutler loves throwing it to him. A touchdown and 100+ yards is very much a possibility.

TE Owen Daniels, Houston Texans
Owen Daniels continues to work himself up the tight end charts and this week he finds himself on the top. Against the Minnesota Vikings, you can expect the Texans to pass, pass and pass some more. With Andre Johnson getting a lot of the attention, Daniels should be able to roam free.

Santana Moss leaves the competition behind once again.

QB Drew Brees, New Orleans Saints
Playing in London, New Orleans Saints quarterback Drew Brees was phenomenal. Brees finished the game against the San Diego Chargers with 339 yards and three passing touchdowns. He also completed 30 of his 41 pass attempts. Brees has quickly become arguably the best fantasy football quarterback in 2008.

RB Brian Westbrook, Philadelphia Eagles
After missing a few weeks due to injury, Brian Westbrook was back in action and looking 100%. In a dominant performance against the Atlanta Falcons, Westbrook had 167 yards rushing, 42 yards receiving and two total touchdowns. Any injury questions should be muted after this performance.

WR Santana Moss, Washington Redskins
Coming into the 2008 fantasy football campaign, Santana Moss was a fantasy question mark. This year, he has exceeded virtually all expectations. In Week 8, Moss was again dominant as he had nine catches for 140 yards and one touchdown. He now has five touchdowns in his seven games.

TE Antonio Gates, San Diego Chargers
Antonio Gates has once again claimed his spot at the top of the tight end mountain. It’s no surprise that he was the top performer in fantasy football for all tight ends. He finished Week 8 of the 2008 season with a touchdown to go along with 96 receiving yards.

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