Well, today has been a bad day for fantasy owners who have already held their league drafts.

One of the best wide receivers from last season, Sidney Rice, went under the knife today to repair an undisclosed hip problem, which had been bothering him since the Vikings loss to New Orleans.

Now if you were one of the many unlucky souls to have already drafted Rice, then your reaction is probably one of anger and disbelief (five steps, you know). Rice has known about this injury for quite some time and was actually told by doctors that he would need surgery, yet he decided not to heed the advice of people who actually have medical expertise and instead just wait it out.

As we all now know, this strategy was a resounding failure. Reports state that he will miss possibly half the season, and it’s fair to wonder that when he does finally make it back onto the field, if his impact will be felt at all.  You have to assume that by this time Favre will feel more comfortable tossing to his other wide-outs, though Favre and Rice did possess great chemistry last year. Either way, the fact is that Rice now becomes a late season waiver wire claim; the amount of time he will miss doesn’t justify him sitting on your bench.

This surgery changes how one should approach the fantasy season when drafting Vikings players. Below I have compiled a list of players who stand to benefit (stats wise of course) from the absence of Rice. Let’s fast forward to the final step of grief, acceptance, together.

Bernard Berrian–This is just obvious. Last year Berrian played hurt, suffering from a bad hamstring which severely hampered his greatest asset, his speed. As the season wore on, he became the fourth or sometimes even fifth option on the Vikings loaded offense, and his stats showed this switch. He ended the season with only 618 yards and 4 TDs.

Towards the end of the season, it was reported that Berrian was finally in good health, though neither his targets nor stats saw any huge improvement. That was until the NFC Championship game. Berrian caught 9 passes for 102 yards, and note that this was the game in which Rice suffered his injury. With Rice unable to go at full speed, Berrian became the No. 1 WR again, just like he was supposed to be when the Vikings signed him to a huge free agent contract.

The best part of all of this is that there is a good chance Berrian went undrafted in your league or, at the least, very late, which now appears to be an absolute steal.  He’s the man who automatically becomes the No. 1 WR on a team in which the top two guys previously ahead of him are either out due to surgery (Rice) or have a medical problem which makes them an unsure start each and every week (Harvin). If you haven’t yet drafted, assume that Berrian’s draft stock will be on the rise and be prepared to grab him earlier than previously thought.

Visanthe Shiancoe–Everyone knows that he was a red zone monster last year, putting up 11 TDs, second most among TEs. With the loss of Rice and the relatively thin crop of WRs behind Berrian and Harvin (who’s status is still uncertain at this time), I fully expect Shiancoe to see an uptick in yardage as well as even more targets in the end zone. Shiancoe is now the tallest and longest receiver the Vikings have at the beginning of the season, and we all know Brett Favre loves his TEs as well.

As with Berrian, Shiancoe also thrived in the NFC Championship game with an injured Rice, as he managed to catch four passes for 83 yards. Furthermore, I expect the Vikings to use more of a formation they employed last season in able to cover up the loss of Rice. Shiancoe would split out far wide right (something he is able to do due to his speed and size), Berrian would be the opposite end out wide, Harvin would work out of the slot and Favre would be joined in the shotgun with Adrian Peterson and probably now, Toby Gerhart. This formation puts the best offensive players the Vikings have on the field and enhances the value of Shiancoe. I fully expect him to be a top 5 TE, not by when Rice returns, but by season’s end now.

Adrian Peterson- Honestly, with this latest development I would take AP first overall. He already stood to increase his receiving total with the loss of Chester Taylor to the Bears, but now I expect the offense to once again be geared through him. Peterson looks like a man with something to prove, not only to the commentators who have put him behind Chris Johnson on the “best back list,” but also to himself. Peterson expects to rush for 2,000 yards every season, and when he falls 700 yards short, well, mama get that man a sandwich. He also wants a new contract; I’m not saying that he needed the extra motivation, but monetary concerns always spice things up a bit.

As long as Peterson holds onto the ball, I expect him to be the No. 1 scoring RB for the first time in his career.

In Closing

So if you drafted Rice, try to grab Berrian off of the waiver wire if he’s there, if he’s not, well, sorry. For everyone who hasn’t drafted yet, I strongly urge to you to reconsider where you value the previously listed players.

On another note, if you’re a Vikings fan (like me) who saw this news this morning and had the strong urge to throw up, take comfort in knowing that a few years ago, they won the division with Bobby Wade as their second leading receiver, yardage wise.

Bobby Wade.