The Worst Words to Hear

What are the worst words that a fantasy football player can hear?

You might think they would be "out for the season." There's no denying that the phrase can hurt you almost as much as it does the athlete himself, but all it means for you is that you need to run out and get his backup before he becomes the "Pickup of the Week." A few clicks of the mouse, and you're done.

A far worse phrase for anyone in the fantasy football universe is this one: "game-time decision." That's the one that will have you racing home, turning on every television set in the house and hitting the "refresh" button on your computer relentlessly until the team either releases its inactive list (if the team is having mercy on your soul) or takes the field (if the team is the New England Patriots, who like to treat their injury reports this way.)

Some injuries are harder to forecast than others. One thing that has helped in this regard is the NFL's new stance on concussions. If Kevin Kolb, for example, can't pass his test in time, the Philadelphia Eagles have no choice but to start Michael Vick and hope HE doesn't get injured.

But most of the time, fantasy players have to guess whether the word "questionable" means the athlete should be able to gut it out on game day (as Todd Heap hopes to do with his shoulder) or whether that athlete will be scratched late enough to make you question your sanity. The People's Pigskin benefitted Sunday when Beanie Wells went from "coach anticipates him playing" to "inactive," even though he kept the "Q" on our box score page. It's the sort of thing that can happen to anyone, even if you are paying attention.

Moral of the story: Don't take a player's status for granted, and don't believe everything an NFL head coach says.

There are still a few hours to vote on the polls for the People's Pitstop lineup, but if you haven't voted on them, please do so now. We'll be back with the results.