Injuries are an unfortunate part of the game and the longer the season goes on, the more impactful those ailments tend to be. With the fantasy playoffs now within sight, it’s as important as ever to stay informed about injuries and to know how to respond.
Here are the fantasy-relevant injuries to know about as we get ready to move ahead into Week 11.
Week 11 NFL Byes: Denver Broncos, Los Angeles Rams
Aaron Jones (RB) Green Bay Packers – Fantasy manager can breathe a sigh of relief. An MRI revealed Jones suffered a “mild” MCL sprain and may only miss a game or two. That means Jones should be back and ready to go for the fantasy playoffs. It also means that A.J. Dillon has top-10 upside in the next week or two and should be inserted into lineups or considered the No. 1 waiver wire priority where available.
Alvin Kamara (RB) New Orleans Saints – There hasn’t been much of an update on Kamara’s knee. The injury isn’t considered serious but we should find out more this week if Kamara is able to participate in practice. We’ll have updates as the week progresses.
DeAndre Hopkins (WR) Arizona Cardinals – Nuk has now missed two games with a hamstring injury and should be considered very questionable to face the Seahawks. With Arizona holding a Week 12 bye, it might make sense for the Cardinals to hold Hopkins out gain, essentially giving him a month off to get 100% for the playoff push.
Saquon Barkley (RB) New York Giants – Giants’ beat writers reported Barkley looked good in practice on Monday and the expectation is that Barkley will be activated ahead of New York’s trip to Tampa Bay. He could be eased back in but once activated, Barkley offers RB1 upside, even in a tough matchup with the Buccaneers’ outstanding run defense.
Cordarrelle Patterson (RB) Atlanta Falcons – Patterson was limited to just 15 snaps last week before exiting the game with a sprained ankle. With the Falcons looking at a quick turnaround and hosting New England on Thursday, there is almost zero chance Patterson will play in Week 11.
Damien Harris (RB) New England Patriots – Harris still hasn’t cleared the league’s concussion protocol, which is a worrying sign for his overall health. After sitting out Week 10, teammate Rhamondre Stevenson rumbled for 100 rushing yards and two touchdowns. Meanwhile, Harris was still sidelined on the Monday after New England’s victory. After Stevenson’s performance, it wouldn’t be a surprise at all to see the rookie take carries away from Harris, assuming Harris is cleared ahead of Week 11. We’ll keep an eye on this backfield throughout the week and adjust projections accordingly.
Clyde Edwards-Helaire (RB) Kansas City Chiefs – Sidelined since getting hurt in Week 5, CEH is trending towards being activated ahead of Kansas City’s Week 11 showdown with Dallas. Even if he returns, Edwards-Helaire could find himself in an even timeshare with Darrel Williams, so approach this backfield with extreme caution until we see how the snaps are divided out.
Chris Carson (RB) Seattle Seahawks – A neck injury has caused Caron to miss five games so far. Although Carson returned to limited practice last Wednesday, he was never close to being activated. If you’ve managed to stash Carson on IR this long, be prepared to do so for another week or two.
Robert Woods (WR) Los Angeles Rams – Woods tore his ACL in practice Friday and will miss the remainder of the season. He can be dropped in all redraft leagues and having the injury occurred so late into the season could complicate Woods’s status heading into 2022 drafts. Dynasty managers should monitor his health all summer.
Kyler Murray (QB) Arizona Cardinals – Kliff Kingsbury is erring on the side of caution with his franchise signal-caller. Murray “could” have played last week but Kingsbury held him back. We’ll keep an eye on this throughout the week and update in Discord when our Vegas insiders have the prognosis. Fantasy managers should make plans to be without Murray once again.
Ben Roethlisberger (QB) Pittsburgh Steelers – Sidelined by COVID last week, Roethlisberger will need to test negative twice, 24 hours apart before being cleared for Pittsburgh’s Week 11 trip to face the Chargers. Big Ben reportedly was suffering symptoms and could be very questionable for this game. This is a situation to avoid altogether, as Roethlisberger has been a poor fantasy choice all season and would be a particularly lousy option at less than 100%.
Latavius Murray (RB) Baltimore Ravens – The release of Le’Veon Bell indicates that Murray is likely about to return from an ankle injury that has cost him three games. Murray should take over as the main runner but also could be in a virtual 50/50 split with Devonta Freeman.
Cole Beasley (WR) Buffalo Bills – Beasley is dealing with a rib injury that has slowed him down over the past couple of weeks. Beasley was limited to just nine snaps in Buffalo’s blowout win in New York. The outcome of that game was never in doubt, which may have led to Beasley’s limited action. We’ll monitor practice reports this week and adjust projections as news is updated.
Jermar Jefferson (RB) Detroit Lions – Taking advantage of the absence of Jamaal Williams, Jefferson rushed for 41 yards and a score before being felled by an ankle injury. At this point, Jefferson is projected to miss multiple weeks and Williams is tentatively expected to return this week, so Jefferson can be dropped in redraft formats.
Zach Wilson (QB) New York Jets – Wilson is still recovering from a sprained knee but early indications are that the No. 2 overall pick is in-line to get the start after Mike White‘s abysmal showing against Buffalo. Wilson will need to get in some full practices before he can face Miami, otherwise, Joe Flacco could be next man up.
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All morning on Sunday, Senior Analyst Jody Smith will be standing by to answer all your crucial start/sit and keep you updated with all the latest news and injury updates.
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