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.

In this, the last week of byes, there are a few situations that have created opportunity for (somewhat desperate) fantasy owners to pluck a player off the waiver wire and immediately insert them in their starting lineups:

1. Steve Smith 2.0 is out. Mario Manningham is a top 20 play this week. Manningham is available in about 40% of ESPN leagues, so he’s not widely available. But if he’s out there, he’s a pretty solid WR2/flex option with Smith 2.0 sidelined in a great matchup with a very suspect Cowboys’ pass defense. If Manningham is on your bench, consider starting him this week. I have him ranked #19.

2. Owen Daniels is ruled out. Joel Dreessen looks like a sneaky good play. Last week, with Daniels sidelined, Dreessen caught five passes for 67 yards and was the most-targeted Texan receiver (8). He has caught two TDs on the year and has a terrific matchup with Jacksonville, who is among the worst at giving up points to opposing TEs. I have him ranked #14 this week.

3. DeAngelo Williams and Jonathan Stewart are out. Mike Goodson gets the start. Tyrell Sutton is out as well, so Goodson has no competition for carries this week. The Bucs are 30th against the run, so there is some opportunity for Goodson to rack up some yards on the ground. He is also dangerous as a pass catcher, so I wouldn’t be surprised if he gained 120+ yards from scrimmage. I have him ranked #26 this week, so he’s a fringe RB2/flex play.