Injuries are inevitable in fantasy football. How you prepare and react to them is what can make or break your fantasy team. Did you build a bench with sufficient depth to withstand the running back carousel? How do you pivot if a key player goes on injured reserve? Each week we will look at the most impactful injuries in the fantasy world and what players will step up their fantasy production as a result.
In week seven, we lost the consensus 1.01 in dynasty rookie drafts this year just as he was ascending to full bell-cow status and elite fantasy option.
Breece Hall
Hall had been a top-three fantasy running back over the last four weeks and led the perennially downtrodden Jets to a four-game winning streak. The timing of this ACL tear was brutal for hopeful Jets fans and Hall owners alike. He should make a full recovery and be back in 2023. Of note his particular ACL tear is less severe than the one incurred by Javonte Williams this year so he is likely to return before Javonte.
Fantasy Impact
James Robinson was just traded from Jacksonville to the Jets. That said, Michael Carter still should become the RB1 in New York at least in the near term. From a fantasy perspective, Carter was serviceable in this role last year. He averaged 11.0 fantasy points per game before Breece Hall entered the equation. Robinson only commanded a sixth round pick via trade so it made sense for the Jets to add depth here.
Amon-Ra St. Brown
The most frustrating injuries to fantasy owners are when a player gets injured very early in the game leaving with a minuscule contribution to the team’s fantasy score. That was the case here as St. Brown left after only one catch for four yards in the early first quarter.
Fantasy Impact
Fortunately, it looks as though Amon will not miss any time. Under new protocols, if a player is wobbling at all when they get up from a hit they will sit the remainder of the game.
D.K. Metcalf
This is good news for Metcalf and his fantasy owners. In further researching this it sounds like a week-to-week injury. I’d expect him to sit next week and have a chance to come back the week after.
Mike Williams
The Chargers have a bye this week. High ankle sprains tend to be multi-week injuries. Although the bye helps with his missed games expect him to miss a couple after the bye. He isn’t a sharp break route runner so he may be able to return faster than other wide receivers.
Fantasy impact:
The Chargers just got Keenan Allen back. He also has another week to rest his hamstring due to the Chargers bye. Expect him to go nuclear in week 9 if Williams misses that game.
David Njoku
Njoku was having a breakout season. He was the TE 4 overall at the time of this injury. High ankle sprains can last a while and also hamper performance once the player does return. I wouldn’t expect Njoku to be his normal self til the latter part of the two to five week window.
Fantasy impact:
Amari Cooper is already sporting a 27.6% target share. In Njoku’s absence, I would expect this to crest over 30%. Harrison Bryant should step into the starting tight end role.
Daniel Bellinger
Bellinger was beginning to show some of the promise that made the Giants draft him in the fourth round. This could cause him to miss the remainder of the season.
Other notable players in the prior week’s estimated return to action
Sam Darnold – Shoulder – Week 8
Jameis Winston – Back fractures – Week 8
Michael Thomas – Turf Toe – Week 8-9
Russell Wilson – Hamstring – Week 8
Jahan Dotson – Hamstring – Week 9-10
James Conner – Ribs – Week 8
Kyren Williams – Ankle – Week 8
D’Andre Swift – Shoulder and ankle – Week 8
Jameson Williams – ACL – Week 8-9
Darren Waller – Hamstring – Week 8-9
Kyren Williams – Ankle – Week 8-9
Elijah Mitchell – MCL – Week 8-9
Treylon Burks – Turf Toe – Week 9-10
Cordarelle Patterson – Knee – Week 10
Carson Wentz – Week 11-13
Marquise Brown – Week 11-12
J.K. Dobbins – Knee – Week 12-14
Daniel Bellinger – Broken eye socket – Week 14-15
Javonte Williams – ACL – Out for the season
Breece Hall – ACL – Out for the season
Rashaad Penny – Broken fibula – Out for the season
Sterling Shephard – Out for the season
Trey Lance – Out for the season
I hope you enjoyed reading my article. My goal is to provide actionable advice you can utilize to improve your dynasty team. You can follow me on Twitter @force_fantasy. #DFFArmy #FantasyFootball #AlwaysBeBuilding #NFL #NFLDraft #NFLTransactions #NFLTrades #AlwaysBeScouting
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