Dynasty Injury Report: Week One

Bruce Matson

After what feels like the longest off-season we’ve ever experienced, we finally made it to week one. Unfortunately, once games start being played, the injuries start to mount up. Staying up to date with injuries and being able to react appropriately from the news can allow fantasy gamers to take advantage of the waiver wire and discounts off the trade market.

With that being said, let’s take a look at some of the being reported after week one:

QUARTERBACK

Marcus Mariota, LV

Mariota has been dealing with a pectoral strain that landed him on the injured reserve list. Derek Carr is currently the team’s starting quarterback and will remain the starter unless he experiences a run of poor play. When he comes back from injury, Mariota will be slated at the team’s backup until further notice.

RUNNING BACK

James Conner, PIT

Conner sprained his ankle in his week one matchup against the New York Giants. Shortly after, we saw Benny Snell take over as the lead back to rush for 113 yards on 19 carries. Right now, it looks like it could be Snell’s job to lose – especially if Conner is going to experience another injury-plagued year.

Expect to see a massive bump in value for Snell if he can continue to replicate this performance. The opposite can be said for Conner if he can’t get back to full health and regain the starting job.

Marlon Mack, IND

Mack suffered a season-ending Achilles injury. Going into the season, he was carrying a 119 ADP and was being drafted as the RB40 in dynasty. It looks like his dynasty value will sadly become an afterthought. The Colts’ second-round rookie running back, Jonathan Taylor, is projected to be the team’s bell-cow between the tackles with Nyhiem Hines also taking touches out of the backfield.

If we could draw a positive from this situation, Mack is expected to hit free agency at the end of the year, giving him the opportunity to search for greener pastures. Taylor is the future for Indianapolis and going to a team that needs an added boost at the running back position might be the best thing for Mack.

Le’Veon Bell, NYJ

The Jets placed their star running back on injured reserve and he will be eligible to return in three weeks. He has been dealing with a hamstring injury and will need some extra time to recover. The last thing you want for a 28-year-old running back is to appear on the injury report. Unless this becomes a long-term issue, Bell’s dynasty value shouldn’t see a drastic downtick.

Duke Johnson, Hou

Johnson is considered a long shot to play against the Ravens this week. The veteran running back sprained his ankle during the Houston Texans’ week one contest against the Kansas City Chiefs. It does not appear that he will be on the shelf for too long and should be back on the field within the next couple of weeks.

WIDE RECEIVER

Michael Thomas, NO

It looks like the high ankle injury that was endured during Thomas’ week one contest against the Tampa Buccaneers is worse than expected and he will need several weeks to recover. This is a major blow to fantasy gamers who needed him in their starting lineup.

Emmanuel Sanders and Tre’Quan Smith will receive an increased workload with Thomas out of the picture. If for whatever reason, either one of them is still on the waiver wire, then it would be a smart move to add one of them to your team as a replacement.

This is a situation that we will have to continuously monitor. Hopefully, he doesn’t experience any setbacks during his recovery.

Courtland Sutton, DEN

After suffering a sprained ACJ joint during last Thursday’s practice, Sutton was declared inactive for Monday night’s game against the Tennessee Titans. This is another day-to-day or even week-to-week scenario that we have to monitor for the time being.

We shouldn’t see much of a change in his dynasty value or ADP, considering he’s expected to be on the field soon. If he aggravates his injury and has to miss more games than anticipated, it will create a buying opportunity in dynasty.

Kenny Golladay, DET

Golladay was a week one inactive due to tweaking his hamstring last week. We will need to monitor his status daily to see if he’s going to available for week two against the Green Bay Packers. Reports appear to be optimistic, providing the notion that he will be back on the field sooner than later. His dynasty value should stay on point unless the injury causes him to miss more games than expected.

Deebo Samuel, SF

Samuel experienced a setback when recovering from a Jones fracture in his foot that he endured this past off-season. The 49ers are hopeful that he will return in week four. We could see a slip in his overall dynasty value if he’s not on the field soon. Players tend to receive a slight drop in ADP if they encounter any type of setback that prevents them from seeing the field for a considerable amount of time. This could create a buying opportunity for dynasty managers.

Denzel Mims, NYJ

The Jets placed Mims on injured reserve. He has been dealing with a hamstring injury that prevented him from being able to hit the field for week one. If anything, dynasty managers can take advantage of Mims’ discounted price on the trade market. He’s a young prospect who has plenty of time in his career to earn a role in the league. A minor setback like this shouldn’t bottom out his career.

TIGHT END

Blake Jarwin, DAL

Jarwin’s season is over. He was labeled as a trendy late-round flier in both redraft and dynasty due to the vacated targets in Dallas’ offense from the previous season. This leaves a massive void in the tight end spot for the Cowboys. His long-term fantasy value should now be in question because the chances of Dallas wanting to acquire another tight end either through trades, off waivers or eventually through the draft are now elevated.

Dalton Shultz appears to be the next man up for the Cowboys. He’s worth a stash if he’s free off the waiver wire and you are in desperate need of a tight end. However, I recommend waiting to see how the allocation of targets change going forward. I suspect the flow of targets will divert to the wide receivers, Amari Cooper, CeeDee Lamb, and Michael Gallup along with the running backs.

George Kittle, SF

During the San Francisco 49ers loss to the Arizona Cardinals, Kittle suffered a knee sprain that could put his status for week two in jeopardy. The team is cautiously optimistic that he will be able to suit up against the Jets. However, we have to keep tabs on his status just in case the injury worsens.

David Njoku, CLE

The Browns placed Njoku on injured reserve with a sprained MCL. He is only expected to miss three weeks, but this will be a period where he will be out of sight and out of mind to most fantasy gamers.

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Courtesy of DLF’s ADP Comparison App

We saw a considerable drop in Njoku’s ADP after the Browns added Austin Hooper in free agency. The competition for targets seemed insurmountable for him. Now he’s going to out of the lineup for at least three weeks, allowing Hooper to reign dominance on the field.

If you’re looking for a cheap tight end who carries a lot of upside, then you might want to kick the tires and see if you can get Njoku at a reduced cost. He is signed with the team through 2021 and at that time he will be just 26 years old. There’s also a good possibility he gets traded to another since the Browns are deep at the tight end position and Njoku could fetch some value on the market. After all, it’s a penny-stock move that requires minimal risk to chase a sizeable gain.

bruce matson