Dynasty Injury Impact: Week Two

Austin DeWitt

Remember last week when I declared that we had escaped any “team-destroying” injuries? Well that was short lived, especially if you play in superflex/2QB formats.

These injuries are going to have ripple effects for some very important players, so let’s break it down.

Quarterback

Ben Roethlisberger, PIT

Injury: Torn UCL (Elbow)

Timeframe: IR (Out for Season)

Ben is down and out. This is an injury that, according to Matthew Betz, takes nine-twelve months to recover from. Surgery is needed to repair his elbow.

In the meantime, Mason Rudolph takes the stage. Now, out of all the backups who now have starting jobs due to injury (Rudolph, Teddy Bridgewater, Gardner Minshew), Rudolph has the best-looking profile. I’m not high on the other two as long-term starters in the NFL, but with Rudolph I’m excited to see what transpires.

Drew Brees, NO

Injury: Torn UCL (Thumb)

Timeframe: Six-eight Weeks

Drew Brees suffered an injury that goes by the same name as Roethlisberger’s, but is different. His UCL tear was in his thumb (I didn’t know there were two either). The recovery process is much shorter than tearing your UCL in the elbow, so we can expect him back this season.

According to Betz, we can also expect Brees to play just as well as he did before the injury. While the reports are that he will be out for six weeks, Betz believes eight weeks is more likely.

Other notable injuries, although less significant for fantasy: Trevor Siemian (Ankle)

Running Back

Devin Singletary, BUF

Injury: Hamstring Strain

Timeframe: One-three Weeks

Initially, the reports were that Singletary was considered day-to-day, but recently Buffalo seems concerned with this injury. According to the latest Redshirts Pod, Betz stated that he believes Singletary will be out multiple weeks with this injury.

While he is out, Frank Gore and TJ Yeldon will likely split work. I prefer Yeldon out of those two considering he’s not 100 years old, but Christian Wade is also a name to watch.

James Conner, PIT

Injury: Hyperextended knee

Timeframe: Week to week

Conner’s injury was downplayed by teammates and thankfully the MRI came back negative for any ligament damage. It is now being called a bone bruise. All good right? Not so fast.

It may sound minor, but bone bruises are very painful. Marvin Jones suffered the same injury last year and just 15 days later was placed on IR. Now Conner says that he’s playing in Week Three, but monitor the situation closely. This could take some time to heal.

LeSean McCoy, KC

Injury: Left ankle sprain

Timeframe: Day to day

After a clean MRI came back, it appears that McCoy is on track to play in Week Three. Proceed with caution though since he will not be at 100%.

If you need more proof that you’re better off leaving McCoy on your bench, look at Joe Mixon’s Week Two performance after suffering a similar injury. Expect more Darwin Thompson in Week Three.

Damien Williams, KC

Injury: Right Knee Contusion

Timeframe: Day to Day

Suffering what could have been an injury very similar to James Conner’s, Williams came out looking better. He may be able to play as soon as Week Three. If he misses next week, it will be the Darwin Thompson show in KC since McCoy will also be hampered.

Other notable injuries, although less significant for fantasy: Josh Jacobs (Groin)

Wide Receiver

Alshon Jeffery, PHI

Injury: Calf Strain

Timeframe: Week to week

Normally a calf strain would be a one to two week absence, but there’s another component to this. Alshon Jeffery has a history of these types of injuries so be sure to monitor how things play out during practice.

If he misses time, I would expect the rookie JJ Arcega-Whiteside to get some run and showcase his abilities.

DeSean Jackson, PHI

Injury: Groin sprain

Timeframe: Week to week

Things keep piling up in Philly. Jackson left during the first quarter of Sunday night’s game. While he doesn’t have the history with this specific injury that Jeffery has with his, there are some big risks associated with a groin strain.

Specifically, the risk of re-injury is very high within the first two weeks back. You almost want to see him rest and take a couple weeks off instead of pushing to come back.

Michael Gallup, DAL

Injury: Torn meniscus

Timeframe: Two-four weeks

A bummer of a setback for what was a promising start in 2019 for Gallup. The good news is that the timeframe for recovery is about a month. DK Metcalf suffered the same injury back in August and he’s clearly doing ok.

It’s a setback, but its only temporary. Expect a couple more targets for both Amari Cooper and Randall Cobb.

Other notable injuries, although less significant for fantasy: Tyrell Williams (Hip), Cody Latimer (Concussion)

Tight End

Dallas Goedert, PHI

Injury: Calf strain

Timeframe: Week to week

Get it together, Eagles. This really isn’t so much of a new injury as it is a re-injury. He dealt with this during training camp. Like a lot of injuries this week, you’re going to want to monitor practice reports to see what he looks like as game time approaches.

David Njoku, CLE

Injury: Concussion

Timeframe: Day to day

If you started Njoku in Week Two after his good performance the previous week, you were very unlucky. On his first target of the game, Njoku was hit and landed on his neck and head resulting in a concussion. There is no set timeframe for returning, so keep an eye on how he is doing during practice.

Other notable injuries, although less significant for fantasy: Tyler Higbee (Chest)

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