Week 8 Fantasy Football Injury Recap
As The Fantasy Footballers’ lead injury analyst and sports physical therapist, I’ll be recapping the previous week’s injuries and giving a projected timeline for recovery all season long. Let’s look at the biggest injuries from Week 8 and take a look at what fantasy managers can expect heading into Week 9 and beyond.
If you’re looking for more detailed injury analysis, check out JoinTheFoot.com for additional premium resources, including access to the Injury Blitz Podcast hosted by yours truly. This bonus podcast, available to all #FootClan Premier members, is a short, yet informative injury podcast that drops late in the week in order to provide all the injury updates you need to set your lineup each week.
QB Jordan Love
Left Groin Strain: Questionable for Week 9
The Packers franchise QB dealt with a left groin injury for most of the game against the Jaguars on Sunday. He was able to stay in the game and play through the injury for most of the contest, but he was ultimately forced to leave the game in the second half as his mobility was severely compromised. We’ll see if Love is able to play next week in a crucial game against the Lions. For now, he should be considered questionable for that game with the decision to play him coming down to his ability to maneuver in and out of the pocket, so that he can safely protect himself. If the team feels he’s unable to protect himself due to compromise mobility, they will likely turn to Malik Willis for Week 9. The good news here for packers fans and Love managers is that the Packers go on bye in Week 10, giving him extra time to recover. I do expect him to return in Week 11 if he’s unable to go next week.
Players impacted: Malik Willis, Jayden Reed, Romeo Doubs, Christian Watson, Tucker Kraft
QB Drake Maye
Concussion Protocol: Week-to-week
Maye took a helmet to helmet hit on Sunday while scrambling and was evaluated for a concussion. He did not return, so he’s now in the league’s protocol. We’ll see how he progresses throughout the week, but the vast majority of players miss at least one game with a concussion. It could very well be Jacoby Brissett in Week 9 against the Titans.
Players impacted: Jacoby Brissett, Hunter Henry, Demario Douglas
RB Kendre Miller
Hamstring Strain: Severity TBD
Miller just returned last week from a pre-season/training camp hamstring injury. Unfortunately, he’s suffered another hamstring injury on Sunday against the Chargers, and he’s now likely to miss multiple weeks again. Worth noting, this most recent injury was to the opposite leg as the injury that Miller suffered this past summer. Either way, Miller is set to miss Week 9 at a minimum.
Players impacted: Alvin Kamara
RB Jordan Mason
Aggravated Left Shoulder Injury: Likely to return in Week 10
Jordan Mason suffered a sprained AC joint in his left shoulder back in Week 8 against the Seahawks. Fortunately, he has not missed time due to this injury prior to Sunday night against the Cowboys. However, in that game Mason aggravated his shoulder injury in the first half and did not return, giving way to Isaac Guerendo as the team’s RB1. The bye week comes at a great time for a banged up 49ers team. Ultimately, I do expect Mason to be available for the team in Week 10 after the bye week, but Christian McCaffrey is expected back (pending any setbacks) for that game, which means Mason’s role in the offense will obviously be reduced to backup work. If he’s not 100% following the bye, look for Guerendo to operate as the RB2 behind CMC. For now, this RB room is a fluid situation that should be monitored closely over the next two weeks. Given that McCaffrey has been dealing with his Achilles tendinitis since July, I’d be surprised if they unleash him for 20+ touches in his first game back. Look for McCaffrey to have a bit of a ramp up time upon his return to the field, which makes Mason’s injury an important one to watch.
Players impacted: Christian McCaffrey, Isaac Guerendo
RB Tyrone Tracy
Concussion: Week-to-week
Tracy was having an excellent game on Monday night, but he was forced to leave in the fourth quarter after hitting the back of his head on the turf following a tackle. He was taken to the locker room for a concussion evaluation and did not return. He now enters the league’s concussion protocol, and given that this game was played on Monday night as opposed to Thursday or Sunday, he’ll have less time to try to progress through the league’s protocol. The Giants take on the Commanders on Sunday, and as of Tuesday morning, I’d consider the rookie doubtful for that NFC East Divisional game.
Players impacted: Devin Singletary, Eric Gray
WR Stefon Diggs
Torn ACL: Out for the year
Stefon Diggs went down on Sunday against the Colts with a non-contact right knee injury and did not return. Unfortunately, as of Tuesday afternoon, we now have confirmation that Diggs will miss the remainder of the season with a torn ACL. There’s never a good time for this sort of injury, but the veteran’s serious knee injury comes at a brutal time in his career given that he’s a pending free agent after the 2024 season. I do expect him to be able to be ready for Week 1 next year, but he’ll be limited all off-season.
Players impacted: C.J. Stroud, Nico Collins, Tank Dell, Dalton Schultz
WRs Christian Kirk & Brian Thomas Jr.
Kirk – Fractured Collarbone: Out for the year
Thomas – Rib Injury: Questionable for Week 9
The Jaguars offense is dealing with major injuries entering Week 9. Travis Etienne has missed the last two weeks with a hamstring injury, and now, they’ll be without Christian Kirk for the rest of the season after he suffered a fractured clavicle on Sunday against Green Bay. He’ll undergo surgery and be placed on IR in the coming days. Fortunately for dynasty leagues, the recovery from this type of procedure is pretty straightforward and won’t linger too long into the off-season. He’ll be full go by the time we get to summer and training camp. Impressive rookie Brian Thomas Jr. also left this game early with a chest/rib injury and did not return. There’s a chance Thomas could miss a game or two with this rib injury, but as of this writing on Monday night, Thomas is getting a second opinion on his injury. Either way, he looks questionable for Week 9. Hopefully, he only misses a game or two, but this is an ongoing situation to monitor.
Players impacted: Trevor Lawrence, Gabe Davis, Evan Engram, Parker Washington
WR Deebo Samuel
Rib Injury: Likely to return in Week 10 after the bye
Samuel left Sunday Night Football with a rib injury in the second half and did not return. The bye week comes at a great time for the aforementioned Deebo as well as Jauan Jennings, who’s missed the last couple of games with a hip injury. I’d tentatively expect all three players back following the team’s Week 9 bye.
Players impacted: George Kittle, Ricky Pearsall, Jauan Jennings
WR Sterling Shepard
Hamstring Injury: Likely Out multiple weeks
With Chris Godwin on IR and Mike Evans out until at least Week 12, the Bucs entered last week’s game extremely shorthanded at WR. They’ll be even more shorthanded if Shepard is unable to play next week after exiting Week 8 early due to a hamstring injury. Hamstring injuries are very difficult for WRs to play through, so I’d be surprised if Shepard is able to go next week. That’ll open up plenty of opportunities for Jalen McMillan and Trey Palmer at wide out while Cade Otton should operate as the de facto ‘WR1’ for Baker Mayfield. There’s a chance Shepard is out through the Week 11 bye.
Players impacted: Jalen McMillan, Trey Palmer, Cade Otton
Additional Injury Notes:
QB Andy Dalton – Sat in Week 8 due to a sprained thumb that he suffered in a motor vehicle accident last week. On Monday, Dave Canales said the team will decide their starting QB later in the week based on Dalton’s health.
QB Derek Carr – Has missed the last three games with an oblique injury. Head coach Dennis Allen said he expects Carr to return to practice this week and be able to start in Week 9 against the Panthers.
RB Rico Dowdle – Was added to the injury report hours before kickoff on Sunday night when he felt ill upon arriving to the stadium. For now, this is a situation to monitor going into Week 9.
RB Jonathan Brooks – The rookie’s 21-day window to be activated off the PUP List has already been opened, but over the last two weeks, his practice status has been: LPx3 (Doubtful) and LP, DNP, LP (Out). Yet to have a full practice with his NFL franchise, Brooks is still not close to handling a full workload. Expect Chuba to continue to lead the backfield in touches over the next few weeks. Logically, it would make sense for the Panthers to incorporate Brooks to some degree following their Week 11 bye. That said, there is a world that exists where the team doesn’t push Brooks to return and/or severely limits his touches in a lost season.
WR Tee Higgins – Suffered a quad injury on Friday last week in practice and missed Week 8 against Philly. For now, I’d consider Tee questionable for Week 9. He’ll need at least a LP Wednesday to have any sort of confidence in his health/availability for next week against the Raiders.
WR Diontae Johnson – Did not play in Week 8 as he was battling a rib injury and in the weeks prior, played through ankle and hamstring injuries. It remains to be seen if his status was due to health, related to trade speculation or both, but regardless, his practice participation is worth monitoring in Week 9. He’s been on the injury report since Week 4 and has not practiced in full since Week 3.
WR Mike Evans – Underwent an MRI last week to evaluate his hamstring injury. He’s dealing with a moderate strain, which usually requires about 4-6 weeks. As of now, the team is tentatively expecting him back in Week 12 following their Week 11 bye. He’ll miss Weeks 9 and 10 at least.
WR Nico Collins – Collins has been on IR since he suffered a hamstring injury in Week 5. He’s eligible to return in Week 10, and there’s been some reported optimism on his recovery. Assuming no setbacks between now and then, Collins has a great chance to return to the lineup in two weeks.
WR Allen Lazard – Did not play in Week 8 due to a chest injury. He was listed as a DNP on Monday’s practice report and reportedly “week-to-week” per Ulbrich. He suggested that the WR is not expected to be placed on IR, but with the Jets playing on a short week on TNF, I’d be surprised if Lazard can go.
TE T.J. Hockenson – Was officially activated off IR last Friday following the team’s loss against the Rams. He will play in Week 9 against the Colts. Data suggests it will take a couple of weeks to ramp up to a full workload.