Calvin Johnson practices; Kevin Smith does not, but he is still starting

This time last week, the good news for the Detroit Lions was that quarterback Matt Stafford was practicing, but wide receiver Calvin Johnson was limited. This week, Johnson is finally practicing with the first team, but that optimism is slightly tempered by the news that running back Kevin Smith didn't practice on Wednesday. At least when Smith is healthy enough to play, he will be the team's starting running back. After a few days of speculation that Smith could lose his starting job or at least fall into a timeshare with Maurice Morris, head coach Jim Schwartz said Wednesday that Smith will remain the team's workhorse back while Morris will be the complementary back and get a few carries.
Johnson took part in all of the individual drills and was running smoothly Wednesday. Johnson, who suffered a right knee injury against the Pittsburgh Steelers in week five, has not played in Detroit's previous two games. Smith, who left Sunday's game with a left shoulder injury, is also dealing with some sort of foot injury. Smith suffered a right shoulder injury earlier this season but did not miss a game. His status for Detroit's week nine game against the Seattle Seahawks is unknown at this point.

Fantasy Analysis:
As has been the norm for the Lions, Smith's official status for the game will probably remain under wraps until Friday's injury report comes out. Even then, that won't tell us much. Still, Smith is a very tough player and I would expect to see him start against the Seahawks. The match-up against Seattle isn't all that great and given Smith's recent production, he is only a flex start in deep leagues. Morris may get 7-10 touches this week, but as Smith gets healthier over the weeks that number should diminish. So all that talk about Morris making this a timeshare looks to be overblown at this point. Johnson didn't practice with the first team at all last week, so today's news is a good sign. He should be ready to go this week, considering that many thought he would play last Sunday and was a late scratch. If he plays, you have to start him.

Players Involved:
RB Morris, Maurice, DET
WR Johnson, Calvin, DET
RB Smith, Kevin, DET

Team Involved:
DET  

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