Week 1 Fantasy Football Injury Report

After Week 1, this article will be published Friday and continuously updated through Sunday morning. This is in addition to a Tuesday update with transaction recommendations. Remember that these projections are an imperfect analysis working with the most current information and five years of historical data. If a player practiced in full, they’ll be excluded from any specific analysis and should be assumed healthy unless otherwise stated.

The following fantasy-relevant players are officially OUT this week (or doubtful):

The following players were full participants in practice on Friday and should not be considered “at risk” unless otherwise stated below.

“*” indicates full breakdown below

The table below contains return timelines for fantasy-relevant players.

Quarterbacks

Joe Burrow - Calf

There is a chance Burrow’s calf injury rears its head again at some point this season but it’s no reason to fade him if you’ve drafted him at this point. It’s a good idea to avoid him in cash games in Week 1, but that’s about it.

Brock Purdy - Elbow

Purdy is returning from a UCL repair, which is much less involved with an injury than a full-blown Tommy John surgery. This timeline isn’t necessarily rushed but it may take him a week or 2 to regain command of the ball in tight windows. He’s a fine option this week, though.

Running Backs

Rhamondre Stevenson - Illness

Stevenson has been dealing with an illness this week. This could be quite literally anything, so the expectations should be tempered in Week 1. He’s not a cash game consideration, but still should be a starter in most leagues when active.

Update: Stevenson will be active and is a must-start in most formats. Useable in GPP games.

Kenneth Walker III - Groin

This is actually classified as a recurrence, as Walker dealt with this early on in camp as well. He’s not on the final injury report and should be in your starting lineup. However, this is a screaming endorsement to stash Zach Charbonnet in case this injury rears its head again in the first few weeks of the season.

Zack Moss - Arm

This one is a bit of a head-scratcher, as the Colts have said they aren’t sure if Moss will play. With a fracture, teams typically know early on whether the player will go. Either way, this backfield is really a mess whether Moss plays or not. Given he’s been limited in practice, he’s got a good shot.

Breece Hall - ACL

Hall is about 10 months removed from his ACL injury and, according to Aaron Rodgers, brings another dimension to the offense. Hall will likely start off slow, seeing somewhere in the neighborhood of 40-50% of snaps, but will slowly work his way into the offense. Don’t forget that in 2018, James White averaged just 54% of snaps but saw 8 targets per game on his way to finishing as the RB10. Don’t fade Hall because of this committee. The ceiling is higher than a Colorado sports bar.

De’Von Achane - Shoulder

Achane is a historically small RB, which raises the question of whether he can hold up in the NFL. We can’t definitively say that he won’t, but there’s simply no percent to confidently say that he can. He’s extremely high-risk, but could return some value as he’s in a backfield with 31-year-old Raheem Mostert, who has a scary knee injury history.

Update: In a bit of a surprise Achane will be OUT today according to Tom Pelissero

Wide Receivers

Terry McLaurin - Toe

McLaurin is coming off of a turf toe injury but has been practicing in full since Thursday. These injuries can be fickle, but the vibes seem good that this was a relatively minor injury. Expect a small dip in production as he works in, and don’t use him in cash games, but he’s a fine option in Week 1.

Marquise Brown, Jerry Jeudy, Romeo Doubs - Hamstring

These three WRs have been limited all week with a hamstring injury. Data since 2018 tells us that one of them, if active, is at a high risk of recurrence. None of these guys are usable in cash lineups and should be used sparingly when possible. Jeudy is questionable, but may take another week to truly get right.

Update: Jerry Jeudy is not expected to play in Week 1. Marquise Brown is expected to play. Romeo Doubs is expected to play but “won’t see a full complement of snaps”. Both of these receivers are moderately volatile this week in DFS. Neither is a must-start.

Jaxon Smith-Njigba - Wrist

Hopefully, JSN has taken contact in practice since his wrist surgery but the assumption is that this procedure was very minor, and there’s minimal concern for recurrence or performance impact

Tight Ends

Mark Andrews - Quad

Andrews has been limited in practice, but there’s no reason to fade the #1 receiving option for the Ravens without definitive evidence that he’s truly limited. Start him in GPP games and in most season-long leagues.

Update: This comes as a huge surprise to us and Ian Rapoport as Andrews will be OUT in Week 1. There isn’t necessarily fear this will be a multi-week absence as of today.

George Kittle - Groin

Last year, Kittle had this same ailment, so a recurrence isn’t unsurprising. In conjunction with the volatility that offense brings to players, perhaps this is an opportunity to trade Kittle away to a rabid 49ers fan.

Update: Kittle will be active in Week 1 per Adam Schefter. In most leagues he’s a must-start but not a guy you’ll want too much exposure to in DFS since he’s dealing with a recurrence.

Darren Waller - Hamstring

Waller is dealing with hamstring “tightness,” but this can get dangerous in a hurry as the 31-year-old was on IR last season with, presumably, this same injury. Waller managers should stay put for now, but prepare yourself for missed games by rostering a second tight end. He’s likely to play in Week 1, but keep in mind the astronomical recurrence rate with these injuries.

Update: Waller is a must-start this week but not usable in DFS formats as the severity of the hamstring strain is unknown.