Welcome back to the Saturday Injury Report! Every week I’ll be looking at injuries across the league for the upcoming slate of games.
Confirmed Out:
Andy Dalton
Diontae Johnson
Anthony Firkser
Russell Gage
Tua Tagovailoa
Tevin Coleman
D’Wayne Eskridge
JaMycal Hasty
Rashaad Penny
Doubtful:
Josh Jacobs
Elijah Mitchell
Tee Higgins
Jamison Crowder
Probable:
Carson Wentz
DeAndre Hopkins
Kalif Raymond
D’Andre Swift
Evan Engram
Darrell Henderson
Dalvin Cook
Darnell Mooney
Early Games
Washington @ Bills
Washington RB Antonio Gibson has been dealing with a shoulder injury since Week 1 but has been able to play through it. Head coach Ron Rivera said Gibson is “good to go” for Week 3 against Buffalo.
Buffalo enters the week with no notable injuries.
Bears @ Browns
Andy Dalton will miss the week with a knee injury, opening the door for first-round rookie pick Justin Fields to run away with the starting job. Hopefully, Fields plays well enough to earn the starting role for the rest of the season. WR Darnell Mooney is expected to play on Sunday, despite being limited in practice throughout the week.
ESPN’s Dan Graziano reported that Odell Beckham will play in Week 3 against the Bears “barring an unforeseen setback between now and game time.” Beckham has been a late scratch the last two weeks, despite his strong performance in camp, which suggests the team might take it slow in his first game back. Fantasy gamers shouldn’t expect Beckham to play a full complement of snaps. The Browns placed WR Jarvis Landry on IR, which opens short-term opportunity for the auxiliary Browns WRs. Anthony Schwartz practiced in full all week and should be rostered in 12-team formats.
Ravens @ Lions
Ravens QB Lamar Jackson missed practice on Thursday due to a “little stomach bug” and returned on Friday. WR Marquise Brown (ankle) logged a limited practice on Friday after not practicing on Thursday. Brown should be active and will hopefully feast on the Lions’ pillow-soft secondary. The team is currently struggling with a COVID-19 breakout, placing DE Jaylon Ferguson, DT Justin Madubuike, T Brandon Williams, and LB Justin Houston on the COVID-19 list. Ferguson tested positive for the virus and the other three players are close contacts. With two starters officially out for Sunday, it looks like a sneaky good spot for the Lions’ skill players.
The Detroit Lions placed WR Tyrell Williams on injured reserve. Williams is eligible to return in Week 6 against the Eagles. Quintez Cephus stepped up in Williams’ absence and earned 12 targets. WR Kalif Raymond logged limited practices all week but should be good to go this Sunday. Raymond only saw two targets on Monday Night Football and I don’t expect his role to grow. Both Cephus and Amon-Ra St. Brown should be rostered in 12-team leagues. Note that D’Andre Swift (groin) was once again limited in practice all week. Swift will most likely suit up on Sunday and should retain his receiving role (18% target share on 25% of his routes).
Colts @ Titans
Carson Wentz is dealing with injuries to both of his ankles. He has a low ankle sprain on his left and a high ankle sprain on the right. Wentz did not practice on Wednesday or Thursday but logged a limited session on Friday. All signs point to Wentz sitting on Sunday, although the Colts are yet to formally rule him out. After missing last week, WR Parris Campbell logged a full practice on Friday and should be able to play against the Titans. Something to monitor would be the status of G Quenton Nelson for Sunday. He was a DNP on Friday, which is a bad omen for his availability on Sunday.
Titans will only be missing TE Anthony Firkser on Sunday.
Chargers @ Chiefs
DL Joey Bosa hasn’t practiced all week and the Chargers might be without his services on Sunday. Bosa’s absence should mean that Chiefs QB Patrick Mahomes (pressured on 27.4% of his dropbacks over the first two weeks) should see a clean pocket more often, raising the floor and ceiling of the aerial offense.
The Chiefs might be without the following defensive starters: DT Chris Jones, DE Frank Clark, CB Charvarius Ward.
Saints @ Patriots
Both the Saints and Patriots are expected to be fully healthy for Sunday.
Falcons @ Giants
The Falcons will be without WRs Russell Gage (ankle) and Frank Darby (calf) on Sunday. WR Olamide Zaccheaus is expected to see increased usage out of the slot.
For the first time, this season Giants RB Saquon Barkley was not listed on the injury report. Hopefully, Barkley shreds the Atlanta Falcons’ poor run-stopping unit. TE Evan Engram (calf) and WR Kenny Golladay (hip) were limited in practice all week. Engram is still dealing with the calf injury from preseason, and his Week 3 status is still unclear. Golladay should be active on Sunday but fantasy gamers might want to consider other alternatives.
Bengals @ Steelers
The Bengals might be without the services of second-year WR Tee Higgins (shoulder) on Sunday. Higgins missed practice on Wednesday and Thursday and head coach Zac Taylor listed him as “day to day”. Higgins practiced in a limited fashion on Friday, but I wouldn’t be surprised if he’s inactive. Given the narrow target distribution in Cincinnati, both Ja’Marr Chase and Tyler Boyd should be in starting lineups.
Steelers WR Diontae Johnson (knee) has already been ruled out for Sunday and he may miss multiple weeks. James Washington will replace Johnson in three wide sets and I expect JuJu Smith-Schuster and Chase Claypool to get increased usage. Ben Roethlisberger practiced in full on Friday, but his pectoral injury is cause for concern. Roethlisberger’s throws are causing him some discomfort and it’s unlikely that he attempts to push the ball downfield.
Cardinals @ Jaguars
Cardinals WR DeAndre Hopkins (ribs) has not practiced all week. The team has noted that they expect he plays on Sunday, but fantasy managers should double-check his status on Sunday.
The Jaguars enter Week 3 with a clean bill of health.
Afternoon Games
Jets @ Broncos
The Jets have ruled out RB Tevin Coleman with a non-COVID illness for Week 3. WR Jamison Crowder did not practice all week and could potentially miss the game on Sunday. QB Zach Wilson practiced in full all week and should be a full go.
Broncos TE Noah Fant (ankle) and WR Tim Patrick (hip) were limited in practice on Wednesday and Thursday. Both pass-catchers logged full practices on Friday and should be good to go against the Jets.
Dolphins @ Raiders
Dolphins’ QB Tua Tagovailoa is dealing with fractured ribs and will miss the Week 3 matchup against the Raiders. Head coach Brian Flores noted that the team is taking it week to week with him. Jacoby Brissett will be the starter for the foreseeable future.
Josh Jacobs is still dealing with an ankle injury and hasn’t practiced all week. He’s currently listed as doubtful, but I’d expect that the team rules him out on Sunday. Neither Kenyan Drake nor Peyton Barber should be started this week.
Buccaneers @ Rams
The Buccaneers placed WR Antonio Brown on the COVID-19 list and he’s expected to miss the game. Both Mike Evans and Chris Godwin should see boosts in volume.
Rams RB Darrell Henderson (ribs) has not practiced all week and is listed as a game-time decision. Head coach Sean McVay noted that Henderson’s availability is a pain tolerance issue. I’d expect that Sony Michel sees a good amount of early-down work, even with Henderson active.
Seahawks @ Vikings
Seahawks head coach Pete Carroll has ruled out RB Rashaad Penny and WR D’Wayne Eskridge for the week.
Dalvin Cook (ankle) has not practiced all week, but head coach Mike Zimmer doesn’t seem worried about the star RB’s availability. Fantasy managers should make sure that they have a backup option in case Cook is a surprise inactive.
Sunday Night Football
Packers @ 49ers
The Packers enter Sunday Night Football with a clean bill of health.
On the 49ers’ side of the ball, WR Brandon Aiyuk is not listed on the injury report. It’s to be seen if he can supplant Trent Sherfield in the pecking order. The team is struggling with injury at the RB spot. JaMycal Hasty has already been ruled out, whereas Elijah Mitchell (shoulder) logged a limited practice on Friday and is currently listed as doubtful. Trey Sermon (concussion) cleared the league’s protocol and practiced in full on Friday. Head coach Kyle Shanahan praised Sermon, noting that he’s been “great all week”. It sounds like Sermon will have an expanded role on Sunday.
Monday Night Football
Eagles @ Cowboys
Eagles backup RB Boston Scott (illness) did not practice on Friday. It’s unlikely he’s going to see much run this year barring an injury to either Miles Sanders or Kenneth Gainwell.
Cowboys star wideout Amari Cooper is dealing with a rib injury but logged a limited practice on Thursday and a full practice on Friday. He should be a full go against the Cowboys on Monday.
Enjoy the games, everyone!