injury impact

Rashod Bateman

Rationalizing Lingering Injuries

Dynasty / By /

I had a thought today – why do we as Dynasty players not value injuries enough? Let me explain – players who we know are good or marginally good see their production fall after being injured. Instead of simply understanding that human bodies do not perform at their best when injured, the analytics community cites advanced or semi-advanced metrics as the explanation for the decreased production instead of the decreased production as simply a byproduct of injury.

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Brian Robinson Jr. Injury Reaction and Outlook

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A day after sitting out the Commanders’ final preseason game, Brian Robinson Jr. was shot twice in the legs during an attempted carjacking. Robinson had been one of the biggest stories of the preseason thus far, ascending the Washington depth chart from perceived RB3 to potential RB1. He sat out the preseason finale, as many anticipate, as a safety precaution, which suggests a large role in the offense could have been possible for Robinson this season. However, this unfortunate turn of events will alter things.

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Rapid Reaction: Chase Edmonds Injury

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Reports surfaced today that Cardinals running back Chase Edmonds suffered a high-ankle sprain in Week 9 against the 49ers, per Adam Schefter on Twitter. Edmonds is expected to miss multiple games. As we saw with Broncos’ wide receiver Jerry Jeudy earlier this season, these injuries can take over a month to heal and have lingering effects on a player’s performance upon return. I highlighted some of the rehab and mobility concerns surrounding ankle sprains in my Kyler Murray Injury reaction article

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Rapid Reaction: Jameis Winston Injury

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There is a heightened level of emotional attachment that fans and players put into divisional rivalries. The familiarity of foe creates a palatable tension in an already brutal sport. You can feel the electricity in the air every time the Buccaneers enter the Superdome to face the Saints and vice versa. This Sunday was no different.

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Zach Wilson Injury: Rapid Reaction

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A slow start to Zach Wilson’s rookie career will now be delayed entirely. ESPN’s Adam Schefter reported the news, stating, “An MRI confirmed a sprained PCL for Jets’ QB Zach Wilson, who now is expected to be sidelined 2-4 weeks, per source.” The Jets presently sit in third place in the AFC East with a 1-5 record after being battered by the Patriots 54-13 in Week 7. The Jets were coming out of their bye in Week 6, meaning Wilson will be afforded no free weeks to recover without missing games. The outlook for the Jets in the meantime is not a positive one.

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Jalen Richard OUT Indefinitely: It’s Time to Stop Sleeping on Kenyan Drake

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Earlier this week, Tashan Reed of The Athletic reported that Las Vegas Raiders’ running back Jalen Richard sustained a foot injury after returning from the COVID-19 list and will be out indefinitely. The report had zero mention of what injury Richard suffered but to be immediately labeled as “out indefinitely” I have to assume it was fairly severe. Plus, foot injuries for skill position players are never a good thing as we have seen in the recent Carson Wentz saga and with Joe Mixon in season’s past.

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Justin Jefferson: Injury Reaction

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Our hearts dropped this week as Vikings’ star Wide Receiver Justin Jefferson went down hard onto his left shoulder. Jefferson then left practice and was seen holding his wrist to support his shoulder. A classic sign of clavicle or collarbone injury. Thankfully, we didn’t have to speculate long as only a few hours later, Adam Schefter reported that Jefferson “has a sprained AC Joint” and it was considered “nothing serious, per source, but there would be further testing this weekend.” So right away, that tells us that Jefferson had an immediate radiograph or x-ray and it was determined that he did not fracture his collarbone which would have knocked him out for 6-8 weeks. 

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DeVonta Smith Sprains MCL: Is Smith too Small to Play in the NFL?

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Well, it happened. Eagles rookie wide receiver DeVonta Smith left practice on Monday with an apparent knee injury. Smith had an MRI which helped diagnose him with a sprained MCL in his knee. According to reports, the injury is considered minor and he is only supposed to be out “a couple of weeks” per Ian Rapoport. 

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Rapid Reaction: Cam Akers’ Torn Achilles

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Cam Akers suffered a torn Achilles while training, a headline first reported by the NFL Network’s Tom Pelisasero. Akers was trending up in all fantasy football formats, going as a late second to early third-round draft pick in Superflex start-up leagues. He also was going as early as the first round in Redraft formats. This is a crushing loss, and we hope for a safe recovery for this promising young man. With an injury of this magnitude, we cannot dwell in our sadness, we must look for opportunities that this has created for us to gain advantages in our fantasy leagues for 2021.

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OBJ Injury Impact: Rapid Reaction

Dynasty / By /

Odell Beckham Jr. was injured this past week with reports coming out this week of a torn ACL. This will unfortunately be the fourth time OBJ will miss at least four games in a season and it will be the third injury that ended his season early. With his birthday next week, the soon-to-be 28 years old will have his eyes set not on the first potential playoff spot for the Browns since 2002, but on the 2021 training camp. It’s a sad loss for a team that seemed to finally be taking that next step.

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Raheem Mostert Injury

Raheem Mostert Injury Reaction

Dynasty / By /

Raheem Mostert suffered a high-ankle sprain in Week 6. Unfortunately, this injury is notoriously difficult to overcome, and Mostert will likely require a trip to the injured reserve. Mostert already missed Weeks 3 and 4 with a knee injury, so this is his second significant injury of the 2020 season.

I’m not sure when Mostert will return, but it’s safe to say that he will miss extended time. Given that he’s already had one injury this season, I have significant concerns about whether Mostert will come back for any meaningful portion of the fantasy season. Mostert must miss Weeks 7-9 after going on injured reserve, and I can’t imagine the 49ers will push him back in Week 10 with a Week 11 bye. 

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The Dak Decision: Understanding and Acting on his Season-Ending Injury

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Sunday was a day on which fans experienced the uplifting hope of seeing the return of Alex Smith, only to feel the despair of losing Dak Prescott. The Dallas Cowboys and Dak Prescott dominated the headlines during the 2020 NFL Offseason, and they are going to do so again in 2021. The 1-3 Dallas Cowboys went into a Week 5 matchup with their division foes the New York Giants in must-win mode.  During the third-quarter Prescott took a first-down quarterback draw as the Cowboys approached the Giants’ red zone. On this play he was tackled by Logan Ryan, as Ryan brought him down he rolled up under Prescott who suffered a compound fracture and dislocation to his right ankle. During the moment, other than thoughts and prayers for Prescott’s health the underlying fear was remembering Gordon Hayward’s similar and brutal injury in 2017.

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Alex Smith’s Return

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I’m going to take a look at Alex Smith’s incredible journey, both in his playing career and his recovery from one of the most devastating injuries in NFL history. The point of this piece isn’t to look at Smith and his past performances. I’ll touch a bit on what I expect from Smith in 2020, assuming he remains Washington’s starter. 

However, I mostly want to appreciate all the hard work Smith did to reach this point. I’ve always been one of Smith’s biggest fans, and I’ve wanted to see him achieve his goal of returning to the field since his injury. When he took the field in Week 5, replacing Kyle Allen, I felt extremely happy for Smith, and that moment touched me. It was a different type of feeling from how I usually feel when watching football. I’ll remember that moment forever, whether Smith goes on to find success in the future or not.

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O.J. Howard’s Torn Achilles

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Howard suffered a devastating torn Achilles injury in the Buccaneers’ Week 4 game. As most of you know, any torn Achilles is a season-ending injury, but it’s also one of the worst injuries in terms of rehab and recovery. Until recently, Achilles injuries were often career-ending, although some players have managed to return from the injury. Emmanuel Sanders is likely the most memorable recent example, and he recovered and returned at relatively full health despite his advanced age.

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Austin Ekeler suffered a hamstring injury in Week 4

Austin Ekeler Injury Reaction

Dynasty / By /

Chargers’ running back Austin Ekeler suffered a severe hamstring injury in their Week 4 game versus the Buccaneers. Ekeler had played well in 2020 before his injury, especially once the Chargers switched to rookie Justin Herbert at quarterback from Tyrod Taylor. In Week 3, Ekeler had 11 receptions on 11 targets for 84 yards, and he ran for 59 yards and a touchdown on 12 carries. Ekeler wasn’t quite the reliable PPR RB1 some had hoped for, but he was a reliable fantasy asset before his injury. Now, he will likely miss a minimum of four weeks. However, I have serious concerns that Ekeler could be gone even longer than that. The Chargers recently signed Ekeler to a 4-year, $24.5 million contract, so they will want to protect their investment in him for the long-term. They currently sit at 1-3, and losing Ekeler will severely hurt their offense.

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Nick Chubb Injury: Rapid Reaction

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During the Browns’ Week 4 49-38 victory over the Cowboys, star running back Nick Chubb suffered an MCL injury. A Cowboys’ player rolled up on him from behind, causing the injury. At the time, Chubb was rolling, with six carries for 43 yards. Honestly, this injury must feel extremely disappointing for Chubb. He struggled through an awful ACL tear in college, which severely hurt his draft stock. However, since that injury in 2015, Chubb has remained practically completely healthy. He played every single game from 2016-2019 throughout two years at Georgia and two years in the NFL.

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The 49ers’ Injury Nightmare

Dynasty / By /

The 49ers are currently dealing with numerous injuries on both the offensive and defensive side of the ball. For now, I’ll focus on the offense, although their defensive injuries are noteworthy for those rostering the 49ers’ D/ST unit. To summarize the defensive issues quickly, they lost Nick Bosa and Solomon Thomas to torn ACLs, decimating their offensive line. I wouldn’t write off their D/ST, but fantasy owners should downgrade them moving forward.

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Saquon Barkley: Season-Ending ACL Injury Impact

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Losing Barkley leaves the Giants with Dion Lewis, Wayne Gallman, and Elijah Penny in their running back room. They do not have a running back on their 10-man practice squad so as expected they filled the roster spot with the veteran back Devonta Freeman. As a reminder, the Giants’ starting left tackle Nate Solder had opt-ed out of the 2020 season, leaving their offensive line lacking starting-caliber players across the board. Because of this, Giants’ running backs are averaging only 1.8 yards per attempt on the season. As a team, the Giants are averaging just over 50 yards rushing per game.

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The Chosen One Falls

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A devastating week in the NFL as many teams, real and fantasy, saw their top stars go down. The clear-cut number one overall pick in both dynasty and redraft leagues, Christian McCaffrey was no exception. McCaffrey left fantasy teams a parting gift, one more touchdown in another top 12 week. Unfortunately, we will have to wait 4-6 weeks as he deals with a high ankle sprain.

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