millions of fantasy football games that Brees is slated to play in. Like their real-world counterparts, virtual team owners need to know just how badly their star athletes are injured and how long recovery will take. But the injury reports that teams release are vague, incomplete, and full of spin.

That’s where Stephania Bell comes in. Switch on ESPN2 or surf over to ESPN.com before kickoff and you’ll see the network’s official fantasy sports injuries analyst dispensing hyperdetailed prognoses that help armchair Jerry Joneses rejigger their rosters. Bell, an orthopedic clinical specialist with 19 years of sports-medicine experience, was just a run-of-the-mill fantasy football fan five years ago. But she took advantage of her expertise to scrutinize footage of injuries and decipher the official reports.

This turned into a series of articles on enthusiast sites and commentary on XM radio sports shows. Then she was called up to the majors. Now she does regular stand-ups on ESPN’s Fantasy Football Now and blogs for the network about the finer points of Reggie Bush’s fractured fibula. Sports fans ignore her diagnoses at their peril — reconfiguring your imaginary lineup based on her instincts can really pay off. Take last season, when Atlanta Falcons running back Michael Turner suffered a high ankle sprain but was back on the field in two weeks. “There was no way he was fully recovered,” she says and told viewers as much. “Running backs take a lot of stress through the ankles, and Turner’s a stout, powerful guy. I knew he was going to be in trouble, and he was.” Sure enough, Turner underperformed in his first game back, got hurt again, and was taken out. He should have spent less time listening to his trainer and more time watching cable TV.

Authors: Amanda Schupak

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