If you’re new to fantasy football and your number one draft pick is ruled out of the game due to an injury, can you salvage your season? It’s always devastating to see a football player suffer a serious injury in a game. It’s even worse for a fantasy manager when it’s someone in your lineup.
The opening weekend for the 2024 NFL season was a brutal one for injuries. On the first Friday of the season, the Green Bays Packers lost quarterback Jordan Love to a knee injury on the final drive of the game. Love is expected to be out anywhere from 3-6 weeks while he recovers. Later in the weekend, Dallas Cowboys tight end, Jake Ferguson was ruled out with a less serious injury but will still miss a few weeks due to a sprained knee. Sadly, fellow tight end David Njoku of the Cleveland Browns wasn’t as fortunate. Reports indicate that Njoku suffered a high ankle sprain that could keep him out of the lineup for weeks. In a tough contest against the Detroit Lions on Sunday night, the Los Angeles Rams lost standout second-year receiver Puka Nacua to a knee injury.
NFL Injuries can be incredibly upsetting for fantasy managers who place their season hopes on a particular athlete. But your fantasy season can be salvaged. As soon as a player has been ruled out for the rest of the game, it’s time to start thinking ahead to next week’s matchup.
Fantasy Football 101: Recovering From Injuries
How To Repair Your Lineup
Once a game has started, players in that game are locked in and no changes can be made to the lineup. But after the week concludes, you can begin making substitutions. The easiest solution is to simply swap that player for someone else on your bench. If you already have another player for that position you can move him to your starting lineup. But you also need to have a plan regarding your injured player. That decision will be based on how many games he’s expected to miss.
Injured Reserve
Follow up on Monday’s injury reports to learn how long your injured player is expected to be out. If the player is placed on the team’s IR list, he’ll be out for a minimum of four weeks. If that happens, you can choose to place that individual on IR status in your fantasy lineup. However, this option is available for only one player throughout the entire season. Using the IR option early in the season is a risk. Depending on how important this player is to your fantasy team and the amount of time this player will be out of your lineup, you may wish to save the IR designation to use later for another player.
The Waiver Wire
This early in the season, there is a wealth of fantasy talent to choose from, when replacing injured players. The selection will likely consist of mid-late round veterans such as New York Giants wide receiver, Wan’Dale Robinson, and under-the-radar bench subs such as San Francisco 49ers running back, Jordan Mason. Although Robinson is a good receiver, he’s been limited by a struggling quarterback and a lackluster offense. Nonetheless, Robinson scored a respectable 11.80 points.
If the Giants can show some improvement over last week’s dismal season opener, Robinson is the number-one receiver on the team. His projection is for double-digit points again this week in their matchup against the Washington Commanders. San Francisco running back Mason was one of the biggest surprises coming off the 49ers’ victory over the New York Jets on Monday night. Filling in for injured superstar Christian McCaffrey, Mason had big shoes to fill and he performed admirably with 28 carries for 147 yards and a touchdown. Mason is projected to score 10.57 points this week against the Minnesota Vikings.
With luck, you might also find Kansas City Chiefs rookie sensation Xavier Worthy on the waiver wire. In his debut performance with the Chiefs, Worthy lived up to the preseason hype. He doubled his projected point total by scoring both a receiving touchdown and a rushing touchdown to finish with 20.8 points. Worthy is projected to score 11.9 points this week against the Cincinnati Bengals. With his blazing speed and versatility, the only downside to playing Worthy this season is the target share with Rashee Rice, Travis Kelce, and eventually the return of Marquis Brown.
It’s Not The End of Your Fantasy Season
Early injuries don’t have to mean the end of your fantasy season. When an injured layer goes down in the NFL, it opens the door for another player to step up and assume that coveted role. Superstars have been made in those moments. Previously unknown players step onto the field and magic can happen and if you’re the fantasy manager with the foresight to start him in your lineup, you could be on your way to making the playoffs.
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