Confusion reigns on the interwebs for folks looking for information about St. Louis Rams WR Danny Amendola's status for this week's game against the Washington Redskins. He is officially listed as limited on the NFL injury report after practicing some with the team today. I suspect the source of the confusion lies within the technicalities of the NFL's official injury reporting mechanisms and the preponderance of fantasy football web sites include a fair number that take a pass on more rigorous fact checking.
If you're planning on Danny Amendola for your fantasy team this week, don't. I suppose anything is possible, but the Rams will be extremely cautious with a player they need over the long haul of the season, no matter how desperate they are for a win this week.
To wit, the comments of one Steve Spagnuolo, the head coach:
(We wanted to) find out where we are at more so than anything. He's eager. He's champing at the bit to get out there and play. If he had his way, he would have been there last week. But there's not a lot of strength there. The strength hasn't fully come back. He can do some things. There were times he looked pretty good but it's just a fear of not having full strength.
Of course he's eager. Danny Amendola is a state secret because if you could harness his energy, the oil producing nations of the world would be thrown into complete turmoil as world tuned in and turned on with 100 percent Amendola.
Joking aside, the strength is the key. Pushing Danny out there now would put him at risk for greater injury, and he would be limited in his ability to contribute without his full strength. With their bye week after this Sunday, the Rams can give him a full two weeks to get back up to full strength.
That said, keep a close eye on what happens at practice tomorrow. While I doubt nothing changes in 24 hours, he's far enough ahead of his recovery that you should keep a close eye on whether or not he goes through more work with the team tomorrow. That will give you a better idea about where he's at for week six.