Thankfully for the Cardinals, Fitzgerald and his fantasy owners, he was able to return to the game. Although he didn’t catch another pass and finished with just 22 receiving yards on the game, the fact that he was able to get back on the field likely means that he avoided serious injury.

Next week, the Cardinals face the Detroit Lions so if Fitzgerald is banged up at all, Arizona may opt to sit him. For fantasy football purposes, that would raise the value of Anquan Boldin and Steve Breaston. If Fitzgerald is able to play, expect him to have a big game against Detroit’s shaky defense.

Will Larry Fitzgerald Play in Week 15? (Image: Zuma Press)

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RB DeShaun Foster, San Francisco 49ers
Filling in for the injured Frank Gore in Week 15, DeShaun Foster put up more than 100 combined yards against the Miami Dolphins. If Gore misses another week, Foster should have an even better game this week against the St. Louis Rams.

WR Deion Branch, Seattle Seahawks
After two straight quality games, it’s safe to start trusting Deion Branch. He followed up a two touchdown game in Week 14 with five catches for 76 yards in Week 16. Although his matchup this week against the New York Jets isn’t great, he’s still a good emergency starter.

TE Zach Miller, Oakland Raiders
Although the Oakland Raiders offense is very bad, Zach Miller is their best offensive player at the moment. He has three straight games with at least five catches and six straight games of at least 40 yards. Miller should have a solid week in fantasy football in Week 15 against the Houston Texans.

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RB Maurice Morris, Seattle Seahawks
The starter at running back currently for the Seahawks is Maurice Morris. He’s beaten out Julius Jones and now is getting the vast majority of the carries. In Week 15 of the fantasy football season, Morris and the Seahawks take on the anemic St. Louis Rams. Morris should be able to have a quality game against their sub par defense.

WR Deion Branch, Seattle Seahawks
Another way to try to take advantage of the Rams in Week 15 is to pick up Deion Branch. Branch is coming off of his best game of the season by far — a two touchdown performance against the New England Patriots. Branch isn’t a great start but he’s getting close to 100% and is a boom or bust choice going forward.

TE Martellus Bennett, Dallas Cowboys
Even though Jason Witten is back in the fold for the Cowboys, Martellus Bennett is still getting some action. Bennett, the backup tight end for Dallas, is a definite threat near the end zone. In the last four games, Bennett only has six catches but three of them have been touchdowns.

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5. Frank Gore, San Francisco 49ers
Although the Niners have had a difficult year, Frank Gore has had a bit of a bounce back season. Last year, he was a fantasy football disappointment but he’s been well worth his preseason draft positions in 2008. Down the stretch, Gore should be a very good option — especially if Shaun Hill can continue having success at quarterback.

4. Michael Turner, Atlanta Falcons
Coming into the 2008 fantasy football season, it was difficult to figure where to put Michael Turner on the running back rankings. But after signing with the Falcons in the offseason, he’s made Atlanta look smart by being a very good running back. Against teams with weak run defenses, he’s especially deadly.

3. Clinton Portis, Washington Redskins
Clinton Portis was actually at the top of this list until recently when he got banged up. If he can get healthy, he’s going to get a lot of carries to end the season. If not, his fantasy owners may have to look elsewhere. However, filling his huge shoes will be close to impossible.

2. Thomas Jones, New York Jets
The true surprise of the 2008 running back rankings has to be Thomas Jones. He didn’t look too good last year in 2007 and many fantasy experts were wondering whether he could lose his starting job. Not only has Jones remained the starter, he’s been arguably the most explosive fantasy back in the NFL this season.

1. Brandon Jacobs, New York Giants
The Super Bowl champion Giants have the best fantasy running back at the moment. Jacobs is almost impossible to bring down in one-on-one situations and he has a nose for the endzone. As long as the Giants keep giving him the rock and as long as he stays healthy, he could very well be the best fantasy running back in 2008.

Photo: Newscom

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RB Tatum Bell, Denver Broncos
If you are looking to strike gold on the Week 12 waiver wire, you definitely have to consider Tatum Bell a sleeper. Bell has been signed by the Broncos after a bevy of injuries depleted their running back corps. Bell has had success in that system before and could excel once again if given a shot.

WR Justin Gage, Tennessee Titans
With teams looking to defend the run, Kerry Collins and the Titans have been forced to pass more in recent weeks. When healthy, Gage has been the team’s number one receiver. He now has three touchdowns in the last two weeks and should continue to get plenty of looks going forward.

TE Benjamin Watson, New England Patriots
As Matt Cassel grows into his role, he seems to be looking more and more for Benjamin Watson. Watson had a big week in Week 11 and is now definitely a Week 12 waiver wire possibility. If he gets enough passes his way, he could easily end up as a top ten tight end over the course of the rest of the season.

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RB Frank Gore, San Francisco 49ers
Although the St. Louis Rams showed a little bit of life a couple weeks ago, they seem to have reversed a bit. Against the New York Jets last weekend, they got demolished — with a lot of the damage coming from running back Thomas Jones. That’s why Frank Gore is such a good start this week. Gore has played very well this week and this juicy matchup has him at the top of the running back list in Week 11.

WR Steve Smith, Carolina Panthers
When it comes to bad defenses, it doesn’t get much worse than the Detroit Lions. The Lions will face off against the Panthers this week, which likely means a big game for Steve Smith. Smith will draw a lot of attention, no doubt, but Detroit still won’t be able to stop him. The only way Smith doesn’t explode is if the Panthers are up early and stop passing the ball.

TE Tony Gonzalez, Kansas City Chiefs
Tony Gonzalez has a very good matchup this weekend against the New Orleans Saints. With Tyler Thigpen playing very well at quarterback, Gonzalez is now a threat to have a big game each and every week. Coming off of a quality fantasy football performance, look for him to follow it up with more big numbers in Week 11 of the fantasy season.

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RB Kevin Faulk, New England Patriots
With injuries to Laurence Maroney, Sammy Morris and LaMont Jordan, the door is open for Kevin Faulk to be the main running back option. The good thing about Faulk is that not only is he good running the ball, he’s also a good receiver. If you need an emergency starter off the waiver wire, you could do much worse than Faulk.

WR Ted Ginn, Jr., Miami Dolphins
After a very slow start to his season, Ted Ginn, Jr. showed why he’s regarded as a big time talent. It’s unknown whether he will ever live up to his potential but with the Miami offense looking solid and quarterback Chad Pennington playing well, Ginn is a wide receiver to keep an eye on.

TE Martellus Bennett, Dallas Cowboys
If Jason Witten is going to miss any action, consider picking up Martellus Bennett. Bennett is the backup tight end in Dallas and he has impressed coaching with his receiving abilities. While he’s an obvious fall off from Witten, Bennett could serve as a sufficient starter for the time being.

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RB Michael Pittman, Denver Broncos
While it’s never a happy feeling starting a running back against the New England Patriots, Pittman should have some success. He’s coming off of a very good week in Week 6 and the Patriots have shown some holes so far in 2008. Pittman is a sleeper to have a huge week this weekend.

WR Isaac Bruce, San Francisco 49ers
The matchup against the New York Giants looks daunting but the Cleveland Browns had success last week through the air against NY. If the 49ers can have similar success, Bruce will be in for a big game. He has emerged as the team’s go-to receiver and he looks to be in very good shape.

TE Donald Lee, Green Bay Packers
It appears as if Aaron Rodgers is slowly but surely adding tight end Donald Lee into the team’s passing attack. Lee, who thrived last season when Brett Favre was quarterback, has a better than average matchup against the Indianapolis Colts. Consider Lee a fantasy football sleeper in Week 7.

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QB Derek Anderson, Cleveland Browns
After a great fantasy season in 2007, big things were expected of Derek Anderson this year. So far, he has been a huge disappointment. He has only two touchdown passes compared to five interceptions. He also hasn’t passed for more than 166 yards in a game this season so far. If he doesn’t improve quickly, expect Brady Quinn to make an appearance before too long.

RB Steven Jackson, St. Louis Rams
Two years ago, Steven Jackson was a fantasy football monster. This year, he was again drafted near the top of most fantasy drafts. However, the early results are disappointing. After three games he has no touchdowns and hasn’t rushed for more than 66 yards in a game yet. The only thing that is saving him is he is doing a great job catching passes.

WR Santonio Holmes, Pittsburgh Steelers
After a season in which he caught a lot of touchdowns and looked like a developing star, Santonio Holmes is back to playing second fiddle in Pittsburgh. The lead wide receiver once again appears to be Hines Ward. With no touchdowns and no 100 yard games to speak of, Holmes has the appearance of a fantasy football bust.

TE Vernon Davis, San Francisco 49ers
While it’s not quite time to bury him for good, Vernon Davis doesn’t look like a tight end that is worth rostering on a fantasy football team. He has only four catches for 68 yards after three games and it seems the 49ers are happy using him as a blocker instead of a receiver. While that may help San Francisco, it makes him near worthless in the fantasy sense.

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RB Michael Bush, Oakland Raiders
With Justin Fargas injured and Darren McFadden banged up, Michael Bush should get plenty of carries against the Bills.

WR Bryant Johnson, San Francisco 49ers
If Bryant Johnson is available in your league, pick him up ASAP. The Niners are going against the friendly Lions defense and Johnson should have a big game.

TE Donald Lee, Green Bay Packers
Although the Packers have a difficult matchup against the Cowboys, the defense of Dallas typically has trouble defending the tight end position.

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