Mid-week updates and trade winds are a-blowin'

There's good news and bad news for LT owners today. Good news: He practiced for the second consecutive day. Bad news: That's what constitutes good news about LT these days. When he returns -- possibly this week -- you can bet he'll be sharing carries with Darren Sproles.

Marion Barber was also a full participant in today's practice, meaning he is very likely to play this Sunday. Tashard Choice should still be retained, and could do very well against Denver if the Cowboys limit Barber's touches. As you know, Felix Jones is out.

Willie Parker hasn't practiced all week due to his "minor" turf toe injury. Better hope he practices Friday, or his prospects on Sunday are slim. Mewelde Moore could be a sneaky start, since Rashard Mendenhall is doing everything in his power to disappoint his coaches.

Kevin Smith will probably be a game-time decision in Week 4.

Cedric Benson and Matt Forte practiced fully and are solid starts this weekend.

Dwayne Bowe returned to practice, which is a positive sign that he may be able to play with his gimpy hammy on Sunday.

Not a bad time to trade...I don't know about you, but getting Sproles, Steve Slaton and Steve Smith (NYG) in return for Randy Moss, Jamaal Charles and Cadillac seems like a pretty great deal to me. Obviously, it's tough to give up a guy like Moss (though there are some concerns about his back injury being more serious than initially thought), but Smith has actually out-performed him thus far and the upgrades at RB are pretty significant (especially if you believe, like I do, that Slaton has GOT to get better). I pulled off this trade in one of my leagues today (won't say which one to protect the innocent) because I was WR rich and RB poor. Hopefully I'll be as happy about it in a few weeks as I am today.

The moral of this story: The next couple of weeks are prime trading season. Owners see byes coming, they're not satisfied with their records, and it's too early to throw in the towel, so they can make desperate moves as a result. Be prepared to take advantage of the situation.

And when I say "take advantage," I mean in the purest sense of the phrase...