NFL football is back! Well, sort of. The NFL preseason kicked off this past week and gave us our first glimpse of NFL action. But with preseason comes the worst part of football. Injuries. In this article, we’ll take a brief look at the most impactful injuries for your fantasy football leagues and how they should impact your drafting.
DeAndre Hopkins
Medium Concern
Houston Texans Wide Receiver DeAndre Hopkins suffered a knee injury that will keep him out for a reported 4-6 weeks. Texans head coach Brian Callahan said it is likely that he will return after four weeks, ahead of their regular season opener.
While it sounds like Hopkins will be on the field for Week 1, there is reason for concern here. Hopkins is 32 years old, well past the prime for most NFL wide receivers. At that age declining explosiveness is already a huge risk and this injury only elevates those concerns. While we don’t know the nature of the injury, any structural damage to the knee would come with a significant risk of re-injury during the season.
A new coaching staff with a very different scheme also multiplies the concern. While Hopkins is an established vet who shouldn’t need the training camp reps, his quarterback, Will Levis, is entering his first year as the Week 1 starter and doing so in a brand-new offensive scheme. Losing Hopkins for training camp limits Levis’ opportunities to get comfortable with Hopkins in the new scheme.
While there are concerns here, Hopkins is a veteran who’s played in a wide variety of schemes and already has built chemistry with Levis. As long as Hopkins' recovery goes according to plan, this issue shouldn’t drop him down your draft board too much.
Malik Nabers
Low Concern
New York Giants rookie Wide Receiver Malik Nabers has possibly been the recipient of the most positive news of any player in the league prior to this past weekend’s injury. Luckily the injury is being reported as a minor low ankle sprain and Nabers is only day-to-day.
Injuries for rookies can be particularly worrisome due to the large learning curve they face entering the league. That may be less important for Nabers, who seems to be the best receiver on the team already. A low ankle sprain is less concerning than the commonly reported high ankle sprain.
A low ankle sprain can lead to a quicker recovery, and considering it’s reported that it’s a minor sprain, there should be lower risks of re-injury. As long as we see Nabers back in the field in the next week or so, I wouldn’t move Nabers down your draft board at all based on this news.
Marquise Brown
Medium Concern
Kansas City Chiefs Wide Receiver Marquise Brown suffered a sternoclavicular joint dislocation that could hold Brown out into the regular season. That is not a good sign for a wide receiver who is new to the team and trying to build chemistry with quarterback Patrick Mahomes. The good news is that the injury does not feature significant re-injury risk.
Even if Brown is back in time for the regular season opener, missing the next four weeks leading up to that game gives an opportunity for rookie Wide Receiver Xavier Worthy with the first team in practice. Worthy, drafted in the first round of this year’s NFL Draft, has already made some head-turning catches in training camp.
Worthy and Brown operate in similar areas of the field, and if Worthy is able to prove himself in Brown’s absence, it could severely limit Brown’s upside. I am moving Brown down my board on this news and giving Worthy a slight bump up.
Jonathon Brooks
Medium Concern
Carolina Panthers rookie Running Back Jonathon Brooks tore his ACL in a college game back in November of last year. While that’s certainly not a new injury, there was an update provided by the Panthers coaching staff that has shifted his fantasy value.
Panthers Head Coach Dave Canales told the media that he’s looking for Brooks to be ready for Week 3 or 4 of the regular season. If that’s later than you expected, you’re not alone. Since that report came out less than two weeks ago, Brooks’ ADP has dropped an average of 4.1 spots on Underdog. That’s the 3rd largest drop in ADP of players in the top 100 over that time. The only players to see their ADP drop more are players who picked up significant injuries and are also included in this article (DeAndre Hopkins and Marquise Brown).
While Brooks certainly should be moved down if you were expecting him to be the bellcow running back for the Panthers in week 1, I’m not taking drastic action on this news. Canales’ answers to questions about Brooks likely indicate that this projection is based on a careful and conservative plan to return Brooks to play. So even though Brooks may miss the first few weeks of the season, it’ll lead to a more robust workload when he does return.
Brooks should be looked at as a running back that could provide a 2nd half of the season surge for your roster. If you draft him, ensure you have a reliable running back option to fill in for at least the first few weeks of the season. That could even be the presumptive Panthers starter at running back in the absence of Brooks, Chubba Hubbard, who is currently coming off the board as RB44 on Sleeper.
Rondale Moore
High Concern
Atlanta Falcons Wide Receiver Rondale Moore suffered a season-ending knee injury in practice. With Moore out for the year, Ray-Ray McLoud is the favorite to step into the slot wide receiver role for the Falcons.
Moore wasn’t expected to be a significant contributor for fantasy outside of dynasty and deeper leagues. McLoud will likely fill a similar role to what Moore would have played, causing little disruption for the other fantasy-relevant players in Atlanta.
MarShawn Lloyd
Medium Concern
Green Bay Packers rookie Running Back MarShawn Lloyd left his team’s first preseason game with a minor hamstring strain. It shouldn’t be serious enough to keep him away from practice too long, but any training camp time missed for a rookie running back who’s competing for the backup job is a significant negative.
Hamstring injuries can have season-long consequences and have a reasonably high rate of re-injury risk. Add onto that the added difficulties of missing time as a rookie competing for a regular role in the offense, and I’ve rated this as having a medium level of concern. If Lloyd can get back on the practice field in the next week, then I’d move that down to low concern, but the longer he’s away from practice, the less time he has to showcase his abilities to the coaching staff and win a role.
Lloyd was already being taken in the final rounds of most standard leagues, but if he misses an extended period with this injury, then I’d push him off my draft board. With the final picks of your managed redraft leagues, you should be seeking players who can explode for their team in week 1. A rookie running back in a competition for the RB2 role on the team that misses extended practice time before the season isn’t a great bet to be featured heavily right off the bat.
Josh Downs
Medium Concern
Indianapolis Colts Wide Receiver Josh Downs suffered a high ankle sprain in practice that leaves his status for the beginning of the season in doubt. While it’s possible that he returns for Week one or only misses one game, high ankle sprains can linger throughout a season and have a high re-injury risk. Downs already dealt with a persistent knee injury in his rookie season and now may be facing a difficult sophomore season with the ankle issue.
There's also concern about chemistry with quarterback Anthony Richardson. Richardson only appeared in four games as a rookie, with two of those shortened by injury. With Downs set to miss the rest of the preseason with the ankle injury, there will be little opportunity for them to build that chemistry ahead of the season.
Rookie Wide Receiver Adonai Mitchell has received some work out of the slot since the injury, and this could fast-track his path to the starting lineup. Even if Mitchell’s play in Downs’ absence wins him a starting job, it likely won’t be to replace Downs in the permanent slot role.
However, if Mitchell uses the added opportunities in practice and preseason action effectively, it could crowd out some of Downs’ role for fantasy. I am moving Downs down my board on this news and giving Mitchell a slight bump up.
Justin Herbert
High Concern
Los Angeles Chargers Quarterback Justin Herbert was diagnosed with a plantar fascia injury that has had him in a walking boot for the past couple of weeks. This type of injury has a high risk of future complications, which could end his season. Right now, there is hope that Herbert will be ready for week 1 of the regular season.
Even if Herbert is ready for Week 1, the significant risk of re-aggravation combined with the potential for reduced mobility is very worrying for his fantasy prospects. Even though Herbert is seen primarily as a pocket passer, limiting a quarterback’s mobility can have significant negative implications.
Herbert is also acclimating to a new offensive scheme and will be at a disadvantage, having missed up to a month of practices leading up to the season. I am moving Herbert down my board with this news and moving the top wide receivers for the Chargers down as well.
Ladd McConkey
Low Concern
Chargers rookie Wide Receiver Ladd McConkey missed some time in practice this past week with an undisclosed injury but has resumed full practice participation since. There are some injury risks for McConkey dating back to his college career, but this seems to be a fairly minor injury.
For fantasy purposes, his own injury here is less concerning than that of his quarterback. I won’t be moving McConkey down due to his injury, but he does take a bit of a hit with the injury to Herbert.
Puka Nacua
Low Concern
Los Angeles Rams Wide Receiver Puka Nacua suffered a knee injury in practice the other week. While the initial prognosis of week-to-week with a knee injury sounds extremely concerning, the actual injury is much less worrying. An injury to the bursa sac can be frustrating as it will hold Nacua out of practice for a few weeks, but it doesn’t have a high re-injury risk or cause any structural damage that could continue to slow the receiver down when he returns from injury.
Once healed, Nacua should be back to his old self, and with how successful he and Stafford were last year, chemistry development shouldn’t be seen as too much of an issue. Nacua’s role in the offense is secure following a breakout rookie season, which he will slide back into when returning to practice ahead of the start of the regular season. I won’t be moving Nacua down my draft board as a result of this injury.
Jaylen Waddle
Low Concern
Miami Dolphins Wide Receiver Jaylen Waddle has missed time in practice with what coach Mike McDaniels is calling a “minor injury.” There hasn’t been much reported on the nature of the injury other than it is minor.
It’s expected that Waddle will be back well before week 1, but given his difficulties battling injuries last year, it’s worrying to hear that Waddle is banged up already. If this injury persists in keeping him out of practice for weeks rather than days, then I would reevaluate my ranking of him due to potential re-injury, but at this time, I’m taking the “minor injury” designation at face value.
Waddle has an established connection with Quarterback Tua Tagovailoa and has played multiple seasons in the current offense already, so missing some practice reps shouldn’t hurt him on the field. I won’t be moving Waddle down my draft board as a result of this injury.
Kendre Miller
High Concern
New Orleans Saints Running Back Kendre Miller went down with a hamstring injury in his first practice of training camp, continuing a worrying trend of injuries for the 2ndyear Saints running back. Miller has yet to return to practice and his head coach, Dennis Allen, has made a firm warning to Miller in the press stating that, “it’s hard to make the team from the training room.”
Miller was a talented back in college, and with a declining Alvin Kamara and an inefficient Jamaal Williams as the only backs in the way of a large workload, there is a lot of promise with Miller. His head coach’s warning should be heard by fantasy managers, though. Miller’s injury history can no longer be brushed off, and we could see him out of the league before he gets a real shot at being a productive fantasy asset.
A hamstring injury that keeps a running back out of practice for multiple weeks would already put me at medium concern, but given Miller’s injury history and Allen’s stern warning, I’m very concerned with Miller’s fantasy prospects. I am moving Miller down my draft board based on this injury and associated news.
Ricky Pearsall
Medium Concern
San Fransisco 49ers rookie Wide Receiver Ricky Pearsall has had an injury-filled start to his NFL career. He started offseason practices in limited fashion due to a shoulder injury, followed by a hamstring injury that caused him to miss the first week of training camp, and now he’s out again with an injury to the same shoulder that had him limited in offseason practices.
Rookies missing practice early is a bad sign for their fantasy outlook much more than veteran players. Rookies have a steep learning curve, and practice is integral to getting ahead of that curve and being productive early. With all this time missed, it’s fair to expect a slow start to Pearsall’s season. Luckily for fantasy managers, there was little expectation for Pearsall to produce early with a crowded group of pass catchers ahead of him. However, if a rumored Brandon Aiyuk trade materializes ahead of the season, Pearsall’s expected ADP climb would be more limited.
I am moving Pearsall down my draft board slightly, but if an Aiyuk trade does come before the season, his rise up the board would be limited due to an expected slow start to the season.
Roman Wilson
Medium Concern
Pittsburgh Steelers rookie Wide Receiver Roman Wilson suffered a high ankle sprain early in training camp and is going on two weeks without participating in practice.
These high ankle injuries can linger and pose a risk for re-injury, and rookies losing valuable practice reps can lead to them being introduced into the lineup later in the year. With Wilson’s third-round draft capital and the run-heavy nature of the team, I don’t see much room for the rookie to have a relevant fantasy season this year, especially early in the season. I have moved Wilson down my draft board and off of it entirely in regularly sized leagues.
JJ McCarthy
Medium Concern
Minnesota Vikings rookie Quarterback JJ McCarthy is undergoing meniscus surgery. While a knee injury requiring surgery commonly means the end of a player’s season, the meniscus can be an exception. The severity of the injury and the type of surgery opted for will determine whether McCarthy is out for weeks or months.
If McCarthy’s injury allows for a 4-6 week recovery time I won’t be moving him down my rankings. There wasn’t an expectation that McCarthy would start week 1 even before the injury. This return timetable allows him to get back to practice for over a month before the Week 6 bye, his most realistic opportunity to take over the starting job.
If McCarthy’s injury requires a 6-9 month recovery, then I’m obviously moving him off my board entirely, as he’ll miss the season. If McCarthy is lost for the season, it will have no impact on the receivers. McCarthy offers potential upside long term but it’s unlikely that he significantly changes the offence over the presumptive starter Sam Darnold.
Jahmyr Gibbs
Medium Concern
Detroit Lions Running Back Jahmyr Gibbs suffered an injury to his hamstring this week in practice. While little has been released about the injury, there’s certainly reason for concern.
Hamstring injuries can have running backs playing below full strength for multiple weeks after returning to play. There’s also significant risk of re-injury with this type of soft tissue injury. Gibbs has avoided most of the injury-risk discussions that fellow undersized backs such as De’Von Achane regularly face but at his size he could quickly be labelled injury prone.
If Gibbs returns to practice this week then I won’t move him in my rankings. If he misses more than a week of practice, however, I’ll be moving him below running backs such as Saquon Barkley, Jonathan Taylor, and possibly Kyren Williams.
