Expect AP back soon

IT IS fantasy playoff time in most leagues, so if you’ve made it this far, you’ve overcome the injuries that beset all teams. Now, all the months of work come down to some must-win weeks, so it gets even more important to avoid the injury risks and putting up zeroes that will put zero in your pocket at the end of the season.

Adrian Peterson is running and cutting on his surgically repaired knee and conceivably could be cleared to play this week. It sounds like Peterson is targeting Week 16 against the Packers. But Peterson told the media he would return only if the Vikings win their next two games — at Jacksonville and home against Indianapolis. If Peterson is cleared medically and can helps the team, he should play. If the team agrees and thinks Peterson would be better served by a full offseason of rehab, then so be it. But Peterson is getting paid now, and for a team still in playoff contention, this has to be a bit galling. Peterson’s repaired meniscus isn’t being rushed back, and there is some recurrence risk regardless, so if cleared, which should happen soon, he need to get on the field.

Rob Gronkowski is done for the season, so Martellus Bennett is going to be the beneficiary of all that tight end production from Tom Brady, right? Right? No, not really, if you look at how the Patriots have played this year without Gronk and in previous seasons. Brady spreads the ball around, and Bennett himself has fought through injuries all season. The ankle sprain he has dealt with almost all season is holding him back in running and in blocking, so the team may not be able to use him in all sets. With Danny Amendola very questionable this week, the Pats may not be able to go four-wide either, which could shift the Pats to splitting out their smaller backs, Dion Lewis and James White, to look for positive matchups. Bennett should play and play reasonably well, but don’t expect any big explosion out of him.

Julio Jones has put up a season that looks superficially solid, but has had highs and lows. Some weeks have been saved by big plays, and some weeks he has vanished entirely. Jones’ latest problem is turf toe, which can be very painful and linger for weeks. The team has kept him out of practice all week, but he is expected to play. There is some risk that he won’t play or will be limited, but in a solid matchup, it is tough to lay off his upside. I would back off him if you have any other options, because at some point, a lot of little injuries stack up high.