NFL Barometer: Who will Replace Foster?

RISING

Alfred Blue, Chris Polk, RB, HOU

Arian Foster (groin) is expected to land on the designated-for-return IR, leaving the Houston offense with an enormous void in both the rushing and passing games for at least half the season. UPDATE: After the initial posting of this article, news broke that Foster may be able to miss the short-term IR and instead return after 4-to-6 weeks. Nothing is certain with that optimistic prognosis, however, and Foster will definitely miss some time. Barring a free-agent signing or a trade, Blue and Polk are the first candidates to push for Foster's snaps at running back. Blue is the incumbent and the by-default leader since he saw the field extensively as a rookie sixth-round pick last year, but Polk should put up a good fight. There is plenty of reason to suspect Polk is simply the better player -- he has been the more productive player in both college and the pros. Blue finished his three-year career at LSU with 1,253 yards (6.0 YPC) and 11 touchdowns in 41 games, while Polk totaled 4,049 yards (5.1 YPC) and 26 touchdowns in 40 games at Washington. Meanwhile, Polk has 270 yards and seven touchdowns on 57 career NFL carries (4.7 YPC), while Blue plodded his way to just 528 yards and two scores on 169 carries as a rookie last year -- "good" for a prohibitively weak 3.1 YPC.

Marcus Mariota, QB, TEN

It's very early, of course, but the initial reports on Mariota's training camp performances have been consistently positive. Mariota's background as a mobile spread offense quarterback was held against him in the pre-draft evaluation process due to concerns about his ability to develop as an NFL-style passer, but the work he's done so far has helped alleviate worries about his passing abilities. Mariota will almost certainly be an elite rushing threat, so if he's a merely adequate passer he should become a useful fantasy quarterback.

Cody Latimer, WR, DEN

Latimer's rookie season was a bust, with the second-round pick catching just two passes for 23 yards, but he's reportedly off to a much better start in his second training camp. According to the Broncos official site, Latimer has had "solid" showings up to this point, including beating Aqib Talib on a go route in Tuesday's practice. There's clearly room for Latimer to make a 2015 impact with Julius Thomas and Wes Welker gone, and the early signs are that he's beginning to capitalize on his 4.4 speed at 6-foot-2, 215.

Kamar Aiken, WR, BAL

Aiken is unlikely to emerge as a truly reliable fantasy asset, but injuries to Baltimore receivers Breshad Perriman (knee) and Marlon Brown (back) have made Aiken a fixture in the first-team offense to open up training camp. If he keeps on earning praise for his work with the first team, it's possible that Aiken could emerge as one of Baltimore's top two receivers. Perriman will be back soon, but Brown has a history of injury troubles, and 36-year-old Steve Smith will have his workload scaled back, if possible. Aiken was fairly productive as a peripheral target, totaling 24 receptions for 267 yards and three touchdowns on 33 targets, so he'll be worth a look if he can maintain a lead role at wideout for Baltimore.

Terrelle Pryor, WR, CLE

Pryor is a complete unknown at receiver, but his size/athleticism combination alone should make him a factor in a Cleveland offense short on pass-catching talent. Listed at 6-4, 223, Pryor is the best athlete among Cleveland's receivers. He was timed in the 4.3-to-4.4-second range in the 40-yard dash at his 2011 pro day, when he weighed in at 232 pounds, so Pryor has the build and athletic traits to make plays both in the red zone and between the 20s. His development throughout training camp and preseason merits close monitoring.

FALLING

Arian Foster, RB, HOU

Foster will miss four to six weeks of playing time with a groin tear, but if he's placed on the designated-for-return IR, which is likely, he wouldn't be eligible to play until Week 9. For a player with Foster's remarkably extensive injury history, it's easy to envision this injury knocking him out for 2015. Foster will be 29 on Aug. 24, so his long-term prospects have dimmed considerably, as well.

Duke Johnson, RB, CLE

A hamstring injury has sidelined Johnson since Saturday and, according to NFL Network's Albert Breer, the injury might keep him out a "couple weeks." Johnson has the talent to quickly make up ground in the Cleveland running-back competition, but he's still missing reps that would have been him on the fast track to emerge as Cleveland's top pass-catching specialist at running back, at least. Isaiah Crowell continues to add steady distance between himself, Johnson and Terrance West in the Cleveland running-back competition.

Jay Ajayi, RB, MIA

Ajayi unexpectedly fell to the fifth round of the draft, presumably due to concerns over a potentially arthritic knee, and the start to his rookie training camp has been a major disappointment too. Although his college production, film and workout numbers imply the skill set of a starting running back, Ajayi has earned low reviews in early practices, and when asked for comment on Ajayi, general manager Mike Tannenbaum was quoted by the Miami Herald as saying, "If Jay Ajayi can't pass protect, he won't be active." Ajayi likely wil show better as a runner once he gets acclimated to NFL practices, but it's quite discouraging that Tannenbaum offered up such a blunt criticism of Ajayi.