The hits keep coming for the Panthers.

Adam Schefter is reporting that the Panthers are “strongly considering” placing DeAngelo Williams on injured reserve. The team’s star running back has been dealing with a foot injury and while some expected him to return this Sunday, his arch is still giving him problems.

With the Panthers well out of contention, it would make sense that they would shut Williams down for the rest of the season in order to not risk further injury. Of course, Jonathan Stewart (concussion) and Tyrell Sutton (ankle) are also dealing with injuries themselves.

In Carolina’s loss to the Bucs last Sunday, Mike Goodson rushed for 100 yards on 23 carries. He also caught three passes for 13 yards although he did lose a fumble as well.

Unless Williams is 100%, I see no reason why Goodson shouldn’t get the majority of the carries. Again, this has become a lost season for Carolina and there’s no sense in risking further injury to Williams if he’s going to favor his foot. While he may not do any more structural damage to his arch, he may injury something else because he’s not completely healthy.

Update: Williams’ season is officially over, as the Panthers have placed him on injured reserve.

Cedric Benson did not practice on Thursday. Rotoworld reports that Bengals players who don’t practice on Wednesday or Thursday usually do not play on Sunday, but that an exception might be made for Benson, who is the league’s 6th-leading rusher. Cincy’s game against Oakland is at 4:15 PM, so fantasy owners with Bernard Scott can simply wait it out and see if Benson is active on Sunday. Those without Scott have a tough decision to make.

Brian Westbrook should make a full recovery. This is great news for Westy, but his 2009 is still in doubt. The doctors are recommending he be re-evaluated in 2-3 weeks, which makes his return in Week 13 at the earliest. The Eagles were told to take a conservative approach, so even if he’s healthy enough to play, I’d expect the team to shut him down if they fall out of the playoff hunt. Fantasy owners should hold onto him in the event that he comes back for the fantasy playoffs, but if there is a good option on the waiver wire, it might be time to cut bait.

Jerious Norwood returns to limited practice. It looks like Michael Turner will be out this week, but he’s optimistic that he’ll be back soon. It’s not inconceivable that Norwood would get some work with Jason Snelling in a RBBC against the Giants, though he’s been out a while with a hip injury.

Kyle Orton has torn ligaments in his left ankle. Brandon Marshall owners should keep an eye on this. If Orton isn’t able to play through this injury, it’s a big blow to Marshall. Orton isn’t great, but he’s a lot better than Chris Simms right now.

Ronnie Brown reportedly has Lisfranc injury. This generally requires surgery and recovery takes a while. If this is indeed the type of injury he has, he will enter the 2010 season as a question mark.

DeAngelo Williams and Jonathan Stewart are both expected to play tonight. Williams sat out practice on Wednesday just to rest, nothing more. He’s a good RB1 play and Stewart is a solid RB2/flex play in most formats.

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