The Green Bay Packers will likely be without startin running back Eddie Lacy for several weeks. NFL Media's Ian Rapoport reported that his ankle injury is more serious than first imagined.
This is a major blow for Green Bay, who remains without backup James Starks (knee surgery) as well. The recently acquired Knile Davis is now the only healthy running back on Green Bay's roster heading into Thursday's game against the Chicago Bears.
What exactly does this mean from a fantasy perspective? First off, it will be interesting to see how Davis transitions into Green Bay's offensive scheme, which is somewhat similar to the west-coast hybrid that the Chiefs run. In this, there might be some initial PPR production here until Davis fully finds a way to become a consistent ball carrier.
For his part, Davis had some tremendous success early in his career with the Chiefs. He tallied 927 total yards and 11 touchdowns while averaging north of four yards per touch in his first two seasons.
Unfortunately, the Texas product fell out of favor in Andy Reid's scheme and was limited to 28 rush attempts last season. As the Chiefs' fourth-stringer for the first six weeks this year, Davis attempted a grand total of one rush.
The primary thing here to look at, at least initially, will be to see just how much better Davis performs with a fresh start and existing in an offense with a better quarterback. That's something to keep an eye on early, starting Thursday against the Bears.
Though, the injury to Lacy impacts Green Bay's passing game more than anything else. A passing game that ranks in the bottom third in yards and the bottom quarter of the NFL in yards per attempt.
Look for the Packers and head coach Mike McCarthy to potentially abandon the run while letting Rodgers toss the ball around the yard. If that's the case, the opportunities are surely going to be there for the likes of Jordy Nelson, Randall Cobb and the recently improved Ty Montgomery.
We'll want to see how this works out against an injury-ravaged Chicago Bears defense Thursday night, but it could place Green Bay's offensive playmakers back on the fantasy radar.