Cedric Benson Suspension: The Fantasy Impact

Thursday afternoon, Michael Silver of Yahoo! Sports reported that Cincinnati Bengals running back Cedric Benson was informed he will be suspended three games for violating the league's personal conduct policy. The suspension follows his involvement in two assault cases. Benson is appealing the suspension with the appeal set to be heard next Tuesday.

The Tuesday appeal means Benson will play this weekend against the San Francisco 49ers. It is not a great matchup for Benson as the 49ers rush defense is among the league leaders. Nonetheless, when healthy and not suspended, Benson remains a consistent start every week. If Benson is unable to get the suspended lifted or reduced, he'll miss games against the Buffalo Bills, Jacksonville Jaguars and Indianapolis Colts.

If Cedric Benson misses any of those games, his backups are Bernard Scott and Brian Leonard. Through two games thus far, Scott has six rushes for 13 yards while Leonard has two rushes for 15 yards and four receptions. Scott would appear to be the primary backup, but if somebody has already grabbed him, Brian Leonard might be worth adding for now. I would imagine we'll see more of a running back by committee approach, but if you're looking for another temporary running back option, you might as well roll the dice on one of these two.