Associated Press
San Francisco's Glen Coffee will take over for injured Frank Gore.
Ed Barkowitz: Playing Niners' Coffee might not burn
FRANK GORE HAS an ankle injury. In other news, the sun rose in the east and the Mets are playing golf next week.
Actually, Gore doesn't miss that many games, but this is the third season in a row he will be out with a bum wheel.
What makes this injury a little different is that his replacement actually has some fantasy value. Not only is Glen Coffee a more viable play than previous backups Michael Robinson and DeShaun Foster, but the 49ers really do seem to have a clue on offense.
Gore is expected to miss at least two games with a right ankle strain and foot sprain, and coach Mike Singletary vows to leave the playbook intact.
"We are not going to alter it one bit," the coach said.
Coffee, a rookie from Alabama, was taken by San Francisco in the third round with the 74th overall pick. He had a real good preseason, for whatever that's worth, but rushed for only 54 yards on 25 carries Sunday against the Vikings when Gore went down on the first play.
"All ballcarriers are supposed to look at themselves as starters, regardless of where they are on the depth chart," Coffee told the San Jose Mercury News. "There isn't supposed to be a dropoff."
The Niners get a visit Sunday from the Rams, whose run defense is far inferior to the Vikings'. Coffee is worth a play in most leagues and should be picked up in all. Gore is expected back after San Fran's bye in Week 6.
"Glen Coffee is not Frank Gore," Singletary said, "but at the same time, we have every bit of confidence in Glen Coffee to go out and do a very good job and be very effective."
Three up
* Mark Bradley, wide receiver, Chiefs: Laugh if you must, but Dwayne Bowe's nagging hamstring injury could open up more looks for Bradley, a sneaky choice as a No. 3 WR.
* Eddie the Bartender, Nick's Roast Beef, South Philly: Boldly proclaimed last week that the Lions would beat the Redskins outright, which came in real handy during last weekend's trip to Vegas. The boys wanted me to thank you, Ed.
Three down
* Fred Jackson, RB, Bills: There are a few run defenses to avoid if possible. Miami, Buffalo's opponent on Sunday, is one of them. The return of Marshawn Lynch to the Bills' lineup doesn't help either.
* Lance Moore, WR, Saints: Though he's been an awful disappointment, it's too early to drop him. If Moore is on your waiver wire and you can carve out the room, take a shot at grabbing and stashing him. The Saints have some juicy November matchups, and if Moore gets his act together, he could be a nice find.
AP watch
Season total. . . 357
Last week's yards. . . 85
Must average for 2,000. . . 126.4
This week's opponent. . . vs. Green Bay
GB rush yds. allowed last week. . . 149
Number of the Week
Ed Barkowitz, who recommends spending a football weekend in Vegas to anyone with a pulse, has been writing about fantasy football in the Daily News since 2001. And yes, he had the Lions getting six.
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fantasyfootball@phillynews.com.
39.7 - The passer rating for Oakland quarterback JaMarcus Russell through the first three games. Russell has one TD pass, four picks and a completion percentage of .413. Just to refresh, after the Raiders took Russell with the No. 1 overall pick in 2007, Detroit took Calvin Johnson second and the Vikings nabbed Adrian Peterson seventh. * Looking in on Vikings running back Adrian Peterson and his pursuit to become the sixth player in history to run for 2,000 yards in a season: * LaDainian Tomlinson, RB, Chargers: Only way he should crack your lineup is if your other choices are Marion Butts, Natrone Means or Chuck Muncie.
* Jerome Harrison, running back, Browns: If you must own a Browns running back, Harrison's the guy. He is still best left on the bench for now, unless you are in a bye-week bind.
